Adjuvant Therapies

Adjuvant therapies are treatments recommended after the cancer has been surgically removed to reduce the chance of cancer recurring in the body elsewhere. We know from decades of treating ladies that simply removing all of the cancer that we know about from the breast and lymph nodes is not enough to give a cure. Microscopic cancer cells can already be present in other parts of the body at the time of diagnosis and surgery, even if we can't actually find them with scans or other tests. These cells can then grow over months or years and then present as what we call metastatic cancer.

We have very good evidence from clinical trials that giving treatments to kill these microscopic cells after surgery, before they have a chance to increase and grow, can reduce the risk of dying from cancer. These treatments are tailored to your cancer and the level of risk we can calculate from its features, and balanced against the effect these treatments can have on your general health and quality of life. Your surgeon will arrange appropriate referrals to medical and radiation oncologists to discuss what might be the best options for you.