Carcinoma of the breast. Stage II--radiation range. Wedge resection and irradiation. An effective treatment in early breast cancer

Concern for the patients' morale as well as their physical well-being has prompted me to present a preliminary report on our experience in local excision and radiation therapy for early breast cancer at the Ontario Institute, Toronto. Many authors such as Porritt,¹Smithers,²Mustakallio,³and de Winter⁴have emphasized a similar concern, and all have been impressed by the excellent survival rates following wide excision and irradiation for early carcinoma of the breast. Actually, if the five-year survival rate is employed as the parameter, no superior method of treatment has so far been demonstrated in stages I and II breast cancer. This conclusion has been amply supported by the prospective clinical trials comparing methods of treatment which have been reported by Kaae and Johansen⁵as well as Paterson and Russell.⁶Also, biometricians such as Park and Lees,⁷McKinnon,⁸and Shimkin⁹have