The Breast Unit is one of the largest in the UK with around 1,000 new breast cancer referrals year at the London and Surrey sites. The majority of patients come from south east England but we also recieve many referrals from other parts of the UK and from all over the world. The unit provides a major clinical service and research commitment to the Royal Marsden and The Institute of Cancer Research.
Most patients are directly referred by their GPs for diagnosis and treatment, and for surveillance if at high risk. Patients are treated in multidisciplinary clinical teams working to common clinical guidelines and protocols. The unit has a major commitment to research into early diagnosis, new treatments and the prevention of breast cancer; in this role it has close links with The Institute of Cancer Research, and the Breakthrough Toby Robins Breast Cancer Research Centre.
The unit’s aim is to deliver the latest, high quality treatment for all stages of breast cancer and to be at the forefront of international research into the development of new treatments, in the identification of women at high risk and in breast cancer prevention.
Features of the unit
- Comprehensive multidisciplinary breast cancer service including prevention, high-risk, strong family history and all aspects of diagnosis and multidisciplinary treatment
- Operating on two sites for geographical convenience - London and Surrey
- Immediate and delayed reconstruction - we provide immediate and delayed breast reconstruction including skin sparing operations, nipple areola tattooing and reconstructive surgery following wide resections, pushing the surgical limits of breast conserving surgery
- Bilateral prophylactic mastectomy and reconstruction in conjunction with the regional Genetics Unit
- Sentinel node services
- Neoadjuvant/preoperative endocrine therapy and chemotherapy to avoid mastectomy for larger cancers
- State of the art medical therapies - we are one of the UKs leading centres for introducing new therapies into standard practice
- Younger women - over the years we have developed a particular expertise in this very difficult and emotionally stressful area
- Pregnancy - we have a special expertise in managing breast cancer during pregnancy
- New drugs - we have access through clinical trials to new drugs and our research in this area is particularly linked to the molecular biology of breast cancer.