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Breast Cancer

Breast Cancer Physician Specialties

Doctor specialties that may be involved in the diagnosis, treatment or ongoing care of Breast Cancer.

General Surgeons	Obstetricians / Gynecologists	Radiation Oncologists
Medical Oncologists	Plastic Surgeons	Surgical Oncologists
Nuclear Medicine Physicians

State Pages

State-specific information and physicians specializing in the care of Breast Cancer.

Specialty Definitions

Radiation Oncologists

A radiologist who deals with the therapeutic applications of radiant energy and its modifiers and the study and management of disease, especially malignant tumors.

Medical Oncologists

An internist who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of all types of cancer and other benign and malignant tumors. This specialist decides on and administers chemotherapy for malignancy, as well as consulting with surgeons and radiotherapists on other treatments for cancer.

Nuclear Medicine Physicians

A nuclear medicine specialist employs the properties of radioactive atoms and molecules in the diagnosis and treatment of disease, and in research. Radiation detection and imaging instrument systems are used to detect disease as it changes the function and metabolism of normal cells, tissues, and organs. A wide variety of diseases can be found in this way, usually before the structure of the organ involved by the disease can be seen to be abnormal by any other techniques. Early detection of coronary artery disease (including acute heart attack); early cancer detection and evaluation of the effect of tumor treatment; diagnosis of infection and inflammation anywhere in the body; and early detection of blood clot in the lungs are all possible with these techniques. Unique forms of radioactive molecules can attack and kill cancer cells (e.g., lymphoma, thyroid cancer) or can relieve the severe pain of cancer that has spread to bone.

The nuclear medicine specialist has special knowledge in the biologic effects of radiation exposure, the fundamentals of the physical sciences and the principles and operation of radiation detection and imaging instrumentation systems. No Sub Specialty.

Plastic Surgeons

A plastic surgeon deals with the repair, reconstruction, or replacement of physical defects of form or function, involving the skin, musculoskeletal system, craniomaxillofacial structures, hand, extremities, breast and trunk, and external genitalia. He/she uses aesthetic surgical principles not only to improve undesirable qualities of normal structures but in all reconstructive procedures as well.; A plastic surgeon possesses special knowledge and skill in the design and surgery of grafts, flaps, free tissue transfer and replantation. Competence in the management of complex wounds, the use of implantable materials, and in tumor surgery is required.
Plastic Surgery within the Head and Neck: A plastic surgeon with additional training in plastic and reconstructive procedures within the head, face, neck and associated structures, including cutaneous head and neck oncology and reconstruction, management of maxillofacial trauma, soft tissue repair and neural surgery. The field is diverse and involves a wide age range of patients, from the newborn to the aged. While both cosmetic and reconstructive surgery are practiced, there are many additional procedures which interface with them.
Surgery of the Hand: A plastic surgeon with additional training in the investigation, preservation, and restoration by medical, surgical, and rehabilitative means, of all structures of the upper extremity directly affecting the form and function of the hand and wrist.

Obstetricians / Gynecologists

An obstetrician/gynecologist possesses special knowledge, skills, and professional capability in the medical and surgical care of the female reproductive system and associated disorders. This physician serves as a consultant to other physicians, and as a primary physician for women.
Critical Care Medicine: An obstetrician-gynecologist who specializes in critical care medicine diagnosis, treats and supports female patients with multiple organ dysfunction. This specialist may have administrative responsibilities for intensive care units and may also facilitate and coordinate patient care amount the primary physician, the critical care staff, and other specialists.
Gynecologic Oncology: An obstetrician/gynecologist who provides consultation and comprehensive management of patients with gynecologic cancer, including those diagnostic and therapeutic procedures necessary for the total care of the patient with gynecologic cancer and resulting complications.
Maternal-Fetal Medicine: An obstetrician/gynecologist who cares for, or provides consultation on, patients with complications of pregnancy. This specialist has advanced knowledge of the obstetrical, medical, and surgical complications of pregnancy, and their effect on both the mother and the fetus. He/she also possesses expertise in the most current diagnostic and treatment modalities used in the care of patients with complicated pregnancies.
Reproductive Endocrinology: An obstetrician/gynecologist who is capable of managing complex problems relating to reproductive endocrinology and infertility.

General Surgeons

A surgeon manages a broad spectrum of surgical conditions affecting almost any area of the body. The surgeon established the diagnosis and provides the preoperative, operative, and postoperative care to surgical patients and is usually responsible for the comprehensive management of the trauma victim and the critically ill surgical patient.

The surgeon uses a variety of diagnostic techniques, including endoscopy, for observing internal structures, and may use specialized instruments during operative procedures. A general surgeon is expected to be familiar with the salient features of other surgical specialties in order to recognize problems in those areas and to know when to refer a patient to another specialist.

Pediatric Surgery

A surgeon with expertise in the management of surgical conditions in premature and newborn infants, children and adolescents.

Surgery of the Hand

A surgeon with expertise in the investigation, preservation, and restoration by medical, surgical, and rehabilitative means, of all structures of the upper extremity directly affecting the form and function of the hand and wrist.

Surgical Critical Care

A surgeon with expertise in the management of the critically ill and postoperative patient, particularly the trauma victim, who specializes in critical care medicine diagnoses, treats and supports patients with multiple organ dysfunction. This specialist may have administrative responsibilities for intensive care units and may also facilitate and coordinate patient care among the primary physician, the critical care staff, and other specialists.

Vascular Surgery

A surgeon with expertise in the management of surgical disorders of the blood vessels, excluding the intercranial vessels or the heart.