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Breast cancer

breast-mm affected-cancer/cancer-types/breast-cancer/what-breast-cancer
    • Home
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      • Ductal carcinoma in situ
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      • Ductal carcinoma in situ
      • Lobular carcinoma in situ
      • Early breast cancer
      • Paget's disease of the nipple
      • Inflammatory breast cancer
      • Locally advanced breast cancer
      • Metastatic breast cancer
      • Follow-up
        • Physical examinations
        • Breast imaging tests
        • Questions to ask
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        • When treatment stops
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        • What makes spread more likely
    • Living with
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        • Costs of treatment and prostheses
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        • Lymphoedema
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      • Ductal carcinoma
      • Lobular carcinoma
      • GP guides and resources
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      • Breast cancer Qstream
    • Home
    • Types
      • Ductal carcinoma in situ
      • Lobular carcinoma in situ
      • Early breast cancer
      • Paget's disease of the nipple
      • Inflammatory breast cancer
      • Locally advanced breast cancer
      • Metastatic breast cancer
    • Statistics
    • Risk factors
    • Symptoms
      • Ductal carcinoma in situ
      • Lobular carcinoma in situ
      • Early breast cancer
      • Paget’s disease of the nipple
      • Inflammatory breast cancer
      • Locally advanced breast cancer
      • Metastatic breast cancer
    • Awareness
      • iPrevent
    • Diagnosis
      • Tests
        • Triple test
      • Stages of breast cancer
      • Receiving a diagnosis
      • Diagnosis of early breast cancer
        • What the pathology report means
      • Diagnosis of ductal carcinoma in situ
        • What the DCIS pathology report means
      • Diagnosis when breast cancer spreads
      • Questions to ask
    • Treatment
      • Treatment team
        • Members of the team
        • Talking with health professionals
        • Questions to ask
      • Deciding about treatment
        • Travelling
        • Pregnancy
        • Tips for making decisions
        • Questions to ask
        • MammaPrint ® (70 gene signature) test
      • Surgery
        • Breast-conserving surgery
        • Mastectomy
        • Surgery to the armpit (axilla)
        • Surgery for metastatic breast cancer
        • Breast reconstruction
        • Choosing a surgeon
        • Questions to ask
        • Care after surgery
      • Radiotherapy
        • Early breast cancer
        • Metastatic breast cancer
        • Questions to ask
        • Skin care
        • Travelling
      • Chemotherapy
        • How does chemotherapy work?
        • Type of chemotherapy
        • What does chemotherapy involve?
        • Side effects
        • Questions to ask
      • Hormonal therapies
        • Hormone receptors
        • Types of hormonal therapy
        • Side effects
        • Menopause and oestrogen production
        • Deciding about hormonal therapies
        • Questions to ask
      • Targeted therapies
        • HER2 receptors
        • Types of targeted therapy
        • Questions to ask
      • Complementary & alternative therapies
        • Complementary therapies
        • Questions to ask
        • Where to find more information
      • Palliative care
        • What is palliative care?
        • Accessing palliative care
        • Questions to ask
      • Ductal carcinoma in situ
      • Lobular carcinoma in situ
      • Early breast cancer
      • Paget's disease of the nipple
      • Inflammatory breast cancer
      • Locally advanced breast cancer
      • Metastatic breast cancer
      • Follow-up
        • Physical examinations
        • Breast imaging tests
        • Questions to ask
      • Advanced disease
        • When treatment stops
        • Facing the possibility of dying
        • Putting your affairs in order
        • Questions to ask
      • Recurrent and secondary cancer
        • What makes spread more likely
    • Living with
      • Practical aspects of diagnosis
        • Costs of treatment and prostheses
        • Travel schemes
        • Questions to ask
        • Choosing a cancer treatment
      • Physical changes
        • Body image
        • Menopause
        • Fertility
        • Lymphoedema
      • Emotional changes
        • How you might feel
        • Effects on partners
        • Effects on children
        • Effects on family and friends
      • Physical changes – metastatic
        • Pain
        • Symptoms and treatment side effects
      • Emotional changes – metastatic
        • Common feelings
      • Practical aspects - metastatic
        • Work
        • Financial support
        • How to access support at home
        • How to access support outside home
        • Questions to ask
    • Life after
      • Health
        • Fatigue
        • Poor sleep
        • Lymphoedema
        • Menopause
        • Pain
        • Diet
        • Exercise
      • Feelings
        • Finding a new ‘normal’
        • Fear of recurrence
        • Feelings of loss
        • Isolation
        • Anxiety and depression
        • Not sure how you feel?
      • Relationships
        • Partners
        • Children
        • Friends
        • Colleagues
      • Practical issues
        • Returning to work
        • Questions to ask your health fund
    • Support
    • Clinical trials
      • What happens in a clinical trial?
      • What are the phases of a clinical trial?
      • Advantages and disadvantages
      • Questions to ask about clinical trials
      • When to find more information
    • Health professionals
      • Menopausal symptoms
      • Screening
      • Breast cancer diagnosis
      • Early breast cancer
      • Metastatic breast cancer
      • Ductal carcinoma
      • Lobular carcinoma
      • GP guides and resources
      • Follow-up care
      • Breast cancer Qstream
  1. Home
  2. Treatment
  3. Surgery
  4. Care after surgery
  • Treatment team
  • Deciding about treatment
  • Surgery
    • Breast-conserving surgery
    • Mastectomy
    • Surgery to the armpit (axilla)
    • Surgery for metastatic breast cancer
    • Breast reconstruction
    • Choosing a surgeon
    • Questions to ask
    • Care after surgery
  • Radiotherapy
  • Chemotherapy
  • Hormonal therapies
  • Targeted therapies
  • Complementary & alternative therapies
  • Palliative care
  • Ductal carcinoma in situ
  • Lobular carcinoma in situ
  • Early breast cancer
  • Paget's disease of the nipple
  • Inflammatory breast cancer
  • Locally advanced breast cancer
  • Metastatic breast cancer
  • Follow-up
  • Advanced disease
  • Recurrent and secondary cancer

Care after surgery

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  • A|A

Ensuring best practice care for women with early breast cancer after surgery.

The care a woman receives after surgery for breast cancer is important. Surgery is usually the first treatment undertaken after a diagnosis, and this period of care includes recovery from surgery, discussions of prognosis and future management, and the provision of information and support.

In recent years, advances in breast cancer treatment have lead to patients diagnosed with early breast cancer spending less time in hospital after surgery.

Having identified this changing aspect of care, National Breat and Ovarian Cancer Centre (NBOCC)* undertook a comprehensive review of current care provided to women after surgery from 2007 to 2010 to examine whether the reduced time spent in hospital may result in women not having their information and support needs met.

The following research was conducted:

  1. systematic international literature review, which identified different models of post-surgical care for women with breast cancer (conducted by NBOCC*, 2008)
  2. analysis of national hospital length of stay data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, which identified trends in post-surgical hospital length of stay over the last decade (conducted by NBOCC*, 2007 and 2009)
  3. survey of women with breast cancer, which sought to collect information about their experiences of post-surgical care across a range of Australian health service settings (conducted by NBOCC* and Breast Cancer Network Australia, 2008)
  4. survey of breast care nurses, which sought to collect information about their experiences in the provision of post-surgical care to women with early breast cancer in Australia (conducted by NBOCC*, 2009)
  5. process mapping of post-surgical care models at 8 hospital sites, which included workshops and interviews with clinicians and allied health professionals about the patient journey and the care process (conducted by NBOCC*, 2009).

This body of work culminated in a national forum attended by key clinical experts, health professionals and women who have had breast cancer in July 2010. The forum attendees agreed on priority action areas which will inform recommendations for a new model of evidence-based, best-practice care for women post-surgery.

  • Last Updated
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updated: 20 October 2020 - 3:32pm
Australian Cancer Trials

Related information

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Treatment and side effects
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The treatment that your doctors recommend will depend on the type of cancer you have, how advanced it is, and other personal factors.

Living with cancer
Living with cancer

A diagnosis of cancer marks the beginning of a journey full of emotional, psychological, physical and practical challenges.

Life after cancer
Life after cancer

While looking forward to finishing their cancer treatment and getting on with life, for some people, the end of treatment can also be a confusing or worrying time.

A-Z List of Cancer Types

Information on more than 70 types of cancer

  • Bladder cancer
  • Bowel cancer
  • Brain cancer
  • Breast cancer
  • Breast cancer in men
  • Breast cancer in young women
  • Cervical cancer
  • Children's Cancer
  • Endometrial cancer
  • Fallopian cancer
  • Gestational trophoblastic disease
  • Gynaecological cancers
  • Head and neck cancer
  • Kidney cancer
  • Leukaemia
  • Liver cancer
  • Lung cancer
  • Lymphoma
  • Melanoma of the skin
  • Mesothelioma cancer
  • Myeloma
  • Neuroendocrine tumours
  • Oesophageal cancer
  • Ovarian cancer
  • Pancreatic cancer
  • Prostate cancer
  • Sarcoma
  • Stomach cancer
  • Testicular cancer
  • Thyroid cancer
  • Unknown primary
  • Uterine sarcoma
  • Vaginal cancer
  • Vulval cancer

About Cancer Australia

Cancer Australia was established by the Australian Government in 2006 to benefit all Australians affected by cancer, and their families and carers. Cancer Australia aims to reduce the impact of cancer, address disparities and improve outcomes for people affected by cancer by leading and coordinating national, evidence-based interventions across the continuum of care.

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