Sensation-al technique: Dr Anne Peled’s passion for driving patient-first treatment
Breast surgery is constantly evolving, allowing patients to think beyond cancer treatment to the quality of life retained post-surgery.
Oncoplastic and Reconstructive Breast Surgeon, Dr Anne Peled, MD has been one of the key players in pushing for advanced treatment options for patients.
Alongside her husband Dr Ziv Peled, they’ve pioneered the techniques of nipple-sparing and sensation-preserving mastectomies at Sutter Health in California, while offering patients the best in class for breast localization with the Magseed® marker.
Evolving surgical options for patients
Speaking on the CancerConnect website, Dr Peled explained how previous treatment options were too focused on the removal of breast cancer, with little thought to the life-changing effects on the body long-term.
“In the past, the only surgical option for patients with breast cancer was removal of all of the breast tissue, nipples, and breast skin via simple mastectomy, without any reconstruction choices,” Dr Peled explained.
“Fortunately, over time, surgical options have evolved and now we have a number of different options for patients.”Dr Anne Peled, MD
Removing only the necessary breast tissue
One of the ways in which Dr Peled and her team are helping to reduce unnecessary surgery is by offering breast-conserving surgery – also known as a lumpectomy – alongside mastectomies.
A lumpectomy involves removing a smaller amount of breast tissue around the tumor site to leave behind as much healthy tissue as possible. This procedure requires a precise understanding of where the cancer is to aid accurate removal.
Previously, this had proven troublesome with the traditional method of the guidewire, but the combination of almost 100% retrieval rate and lower re-excision rates of the Magseed® marker has made this procedure much more effective.
“Guidewires can potentially move from their target after placement, while the Magseed marker cannot be dislodged following insertion. This allows us to more consistently and accurately remove breast cancers”Dr Anne Peled, MD
“Not only that, as guidewires may not target the cancers as accurately, cancerous tissue can unintentionally be left behind in as many as 20 – 50% of lumpectomy surgeries [1]. Marking and removing the tumor with a Magseed marker has been shown to reduce this risk significantly to between 6.5% and 10% [2],” said Dr Peled.
Sparing the nipple and preserving sensation
Being diagnosed with breast cancer herself in 2017 was a real eye-opener for Dr Peled, as she experienced a number of the fears that many of her patients had. One of those most prevalent was of reduced sensation in her breasts, post-surgery.
Working alongside Ziv, a peripheral nerve and plastic surgeon in his own right, they began practicing techniques that would help reduce the risk of losing that sensation.
They eventually found a technique that worked extremely effectively, featuring complex nerve preservation and breast reconstruction – and the skin-sparing mastectomy was born (see below for before and after).
This was soon paired with the cosmetic technique of the nipple-sparing mastectomy, helping hundreds of women experience better physical and aesthetic outcomes.
“Combining sensation preservation with the improved aesthetic outcomes that women are wonderfully now able to have, with nipple-sparing mastectomies and immediate reconstruction, is one of the most exciting and rewarding parts of our practice.”
“It’s been truly amazing to see how much this improves women’s perceptions of themselves and their ability to get back to their lives after surgery.”Dr Anne Peled, MD
“With innovative technologies like Magseed and techniques like sensation-preserving mastectomies, we can improve the standard of breast cancer care for women across the US and the world.” ♦
> Read the full article from Dr Peled and CancerConnect here
> Find out more about Magseed®
[1] Jeevan, R. et al (2012). Reoperation Rates After Breast Conserving Surgery for Breast Cancer Among Women in England: Retrospective Study of Hospital Episode Statistics. BMJ. [online] 345(Jul12 2), pp.e4505-e4505.
[2] Singh (2019). Effectiveness and Safety of Magseed-localization for Excision of Breast Lesions. MD Anderson Cancer Center. SSO 2019, San Diego.