The breast is removed. In some cases, there may be swelling of the arm because of the removal of the lymph nodes. This type of surgery removes only the breast tissue including the nipple. It may be followed by radiation therapy. All of the underarm lymph nodes remain, so the risk of swelling of the arm is greatly reduced.
Breast reconstruction is an option.
The breast is removed. If cancer has spread to the underarm lymph nodes, it may remain undiscovered. Once the diagnosis of breast cancer has been made, the patient undergoes a second surgical procedure at a later date for the removal of lymph nodes to check for the possible spread of cancer and to stage the disease. This is referred to as an axillary dissection. After surgery, once the patient has healed, they begin postop radiation therapy for approximately six weeks.