This page reviews the history of this operation, important considerations in decision making and patient selection, and the emerging field of oncoplastic breast conservation surgery.

[5][6] The time following a cancer diagnosis may be filled with fear, vulnerability, and a sense of being overwhelmed at the amount of information being provided by physicians as well as accessed on the internet.

[13] There is no strong evidence to suggest that oncoplastic breast conserving surgery results in worse outcomes compared to other breast-conserving surgical techniques.

[14] Prior to 1981, there existed limited evidence that breast-conserving surgery was an acceptable alternative to radical mastectomy for treatment of early stage breast cancer.

Dr. Umberto Veronesi, an Italian oncologist, challenged this notion and led a clinical trial comparing the radical mastectomy with breast-conserving surgery (which was termed quadrantectomy at the time).