Breast Cancer in History
As early as the 5th century BC, Hippocrates encountered what he called “hard tumors” in breast. Indeed, breast cancer has been around for as long as women have been.
In 1882, American doctor William Halsted
began performing radical mastectomies to ensure that all cancer cells are removed. His method became the standard surgical intervention for breast cancer for almost a century. This despite the discovery by Stephen Paget in 1889 that cancer cells spread through the blood, and not through adjacent tissues.
In 1927, Geoffrey Keynes adopts more conservative surgical approaches to breast cancer, and in 1936, publishes his findings on radiation therapy.
As early as 1962, tamoxifen, a drug used for breast cancer up to this day, was being studied, initially as a contraceptive.
In 1965, combination chemotherapy was first introduced, a major breakthrough inca er therapy which is still in use today.
In 1986, an NHS Breast Screening Programme in the UK is introduced, offering 3 yearly mammograms to women aged 50 to 64.
In 1992, the Breast Cancer Prevention Trial is launched by the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast Project to assess the value of tamoxifen in preventing breast cancer.
In 1999, the same group launched the landmark STAR trial, to compare the efficacy of raloxifene, an osteoporosis drug, against tamoxifen in breast cancer prevention among high-risk women.