According to a new article in The New York Times, many women diagnosed with breast cancer receive mastectomies, followed by reconstruction surgery.
However, some women enter this situation without all the facts.
With medical technology rapidly changing, some doctors do not inform patients about treatments they are not trained to perform, while others withhold information about procedures that are less profitable, the article states.
Additionally, "Only one third of women undergoing operations for breast cancer said their general surgeons had discussed reconstruction at all, according to a study by Dr. Alderman of 1,844 women in Los Angeles and Detroit that was published in February in the journal Cancer."
To read this article, "The Price of Beauty: Some Hidden Choices in Breast Reconstruction," visit http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/23/health/23beauty.html?_r=1&hp