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The reality of breast cancer always is forced into immediate consciousness when a high profile lady, such as Mrs. Edwards, must deal with this process and permits the media to know of her condition. Similar situations arose when Mrs. Happy Rockefeller and Mrs. Betty Ford were treated while their husbands were in high government positions.

Mrs. Edwards cancer is the typical breast cancer that most women with this disease process will have; and as such, she will be treated in a current and conventional fashion.

Just this morning it was announced that she will receive chemotherapy prior to any surgical procedure and in addition will receive radiation therapy in her course of treatment. Without knowing the extent of her disease, and this should be a personal issue with Mrs. Edwards, her level of treatment would indicate that the cancer is more advanced than just a small tumor in her breast. Receiving chemotherapy, also called neoadjuvant chemotherapy, prior to the surgical procedure is becoming more common in larger breast cancers, and has been proven to give an advantage of control of the tumor.

Clearly, Mrs. Edwards will have to endure some of the discomforts of treatment, including the loss of hair and the pain of surgery and radiation, but she has an excellent chance of conquering the disease.

We feel quite strongly that Mrs. Edwards was afforded a multi-disciplinary approach to her cancer. That is, she had all the specialists involved in her care evaluate her situation and devise a plan of treatment that best suited her. Mrs. Edwards obviously made the final decision.

Here at Presbyterian Cancer Center we offer this same type of multi-disciplinary planning service for our patients. We feel this is the way it should be handled!