By Amanda Gardner
EmpowHer's HealthDay Reporter

FRIDAY, May 16 (HealthDay News) -- After years of declining rates, the number of mastectomies performed on women with breast cancer is on the rise again, the Mayo Clinic now reports.

The increase coincided with heavier usage of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) before surgery, according to the authors, who were expected to present their findings May 31 at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting, in Chicago.

The study found that at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., the percentage of women opting for mastectomy rather than lumpectomy began rising sharply after 2003, in reversal of a previously downward trend.

It is not clear that the experience at the clinic reflects that of the entire nation, though there is some evidence pointing to a wider tendency.

Doctor, am I going to lose my breast? Watch Dr. Jay Harness of St. Joseph Hospital Comprehensive Breast Center in Orange, CA and the President for the American Society of Breast Surgeons explain.

MONDAY, March 31 (HealthDay News) -- Only half the women diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer clearly understand the risks and benefits of a mastectomy versus a breast-conserving lumpectomy plus radiation, even after they have one of the procedures, according to a new study.

If the woman is black or Hispanic, the chances are even less likely she has adequate information, say researchers whose results appear in the latest online issue of the journal Health Services Research.