General Surgery — Flashcards

Flashcard 841: Breast abscesses typically occur as a complication of _____

Answer: infective mastitis

Flashcard 842: What is the first-line management of lactational mastitis? _____ Simple analgesia Warm & cold compress

Answer: Continue breastfeeding

Flashcard 843: Radiotherapy for breast cancer is indicated for women who have recieved _____ surgery or a mastectomy if the cancer is node-positive or T3-T4

Answer: breast-conserving

Flashcard 844: In patients with invasive breast cancer and clinically positive lymph nodes at presentation, _____ is indicated during definitive surgery.

Answer: axillary node clearance

Flashcard 845: Breast cancers with hormone receptors are treated with hormonal therapy for _____ after diagnosis

Answer: 5-10 years

Extra: Current guidelines recommend at least 5 years of adjuvant endocrine therapy (e.g., Tamoxifen or Aromatase Inhibitors). Extended therapy (up to 10 years) is often considered for patients with high-risk features to further reduce the risk of late recurrence.

Flashcard 846: _____ (as part of Breast Conservation Surgery) is the most common surgical management of early breast cancer.

Answer: Wide local excision

Extra: Breast Conservation Surgery (BCS), which includes Wide Local Excision (WLE), is now the most common surgical approach for early-stage breast cancer, providing equivalent survival rates to mastectomy when combined with radiotherapy.

Flashcard 847: Which genes are most commonly associated with breast cancer? _____ & BRCA2

Answer: BRCA1

Flashcard 848: _____ for breast cancer involves: • Physical examination • Imaging (mammogram/USS/other) • Biopsy (core biopsy/fine needle aspiration)

Answer: Triple assessment

Flashcard 849: Mastitis swelling/erythema tends to be in a _____-shaped pattern

Answer: wedge

Flashcard 850: The most common type of breast cancer is _____

Answer: invasive ductal carcinoma