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Breast Cancer
Why Choose Goshen Center for Cancer Care?
Nobody treats patients with breast cancer the way we do at Goshen Center for Cancer Care—northern Indiana’s first comprehensive cancer center. Here you will discover a team of specialty-trained experts experienced in high-risk breast cancer diagnosis and treatment. Our oncology team takes a proactive approach with personalized treatment plans that reduce your risk, attack the cancer and maintain your quality of life. You can rely on our innovative, world-class cancer center.
At Goshen Center for Cancer Care, we take care of you from diagnosis and treatment to recovery and beyond. If you or a loved one has received a cancer diagnosis, our team is available to answer your questions.
Unparalleled breast cancer expertise
Through research and clinical studies, our oncologists and researchers work every day to discover potential breakthrough therapies. Discoveries expand our medical knowledge and may help patients live longer with fewer side effects. Within one center, you have access to complete care with innovative treatments, that precisely identify the location of tumors and deliver a single dose of radiation directly to the tumor during breast cancer surgery. You can be confident that your care is top of the line.
Accredited breast cancer care
Our patients have access to comprehensive care from diagnosis to treatment including:
Advanced, evidence-based clinical services
Multidisciplinary team approach to coordinate the best treatment options
Access to breast cancer-related information, education and support
Information about clinical trials and new treatment options
Breast health screenings
Goshen Center for Cancer Care was there for me when I needed them. They looked at me as an important person. They looked at me as an individual.
When I was diagnosed with cancer, I was like everybody else—you're just stunned that it's happening to you. When I walked in to Goshen, every single face I saw was smiling. Every arm was outreached, and I thought, 'Where on earth could I feel more nurtured?'
Signs & Symptoms
Whether during a self-exam or at a doctor’s appointment, finding a lump in your breast can be scary. While no one expects cancer to happen to them, close to 350,000 women in the U.S. are diagnosed with breast cancer each year according to the Susan G. Komen Foundation.
Breast cancer symptoms include:
A lump or mass
Inverted nipple
Swelling on part or all of your breast
A rash or skin changes on your breast or nipple
Breast pain or tenderness
Discharge that isn’t breast milk
At Goshen Center for Cancer Care, our experts collaborate to address your breast cancer symptoms with compassionate care. We offer cutting-edge expertise right here at home.
Have you noticed any concerning changes in your breasts?
Schedule a mammogram at (574) 364-4600 to catch breast cancer early. Women over the age of 40 should have an annual mammogram whether or not they have symptoms. If you have a family history of breast cancer, your doctor may recommend mammograms before age 40.
Diagnosis & Treatment
A mammogram can find an abnormality in your breast before it’s big enough to feel. If your mammogram shows a suspicious area or lump on your breast, your doctor may recommend an MRI, ultrasound or biopsy. These tests will help your doctor know if the tissue is cancerous.
If the tissue is diagnosed as cancerous, entrust your treatment to our integrated team of specialists at Goshen Center for Cancer Care.
No matter your type or stage of breast cancer, Goshen Center for Cancer Care can help. We provide a collaborative environment that supports you through every step of treatment and beyond. Our integrative approach to care means you’ll work with board-certified, fellowship-trained oncologists—as well as naturopathic doctors, dietitians and mind-body counselors.
You can request an informative packet with ten important questions to ask before cancer treatment to help you determine the best steps to take.
Stages of Breast Cancer
Breast cancer stages indicate the extent of cancer in the body. Oncology experts at Goshen Center for Cancer Care know that understanding each stage’s unique characteristics helps guide treatment. We diagnose the stage and create your personalized treatment plan.
Our specialists use imaging, blood tests and biopsy results to pinpoint the stage of the breast cancer. With test results, we can better understand:
The size of the tumor
Whether the breast cancer is invasive or noninvasive
Whether the cancer has spread to lymph nodes or other organs
What are the stages of breast cancer?
Numbers ranging from zero to four represent each breast cancer stage, beginning with tumors that have remained only in their original site to cancer that has begun to spread.
Stage 0
This type of breast cancer is noninvasive, meaning the tumor remains in its origin site. Stage 0 cancer often responds well to standard treatment options, such as surgery, hormone therapy or radiation.
Stage 1
Stage 1 cancer is an early, invasive cancer that has begun growing into nearby breast tissue. In this stage, the tumor is still small and often responds well to surgery and radiation therapy.
Stage 2
In stage 2 breast cancer, the tumor has spread to nearby lymph nodes. Surgery and radiation are the primary treatments. Shrinking the tumor before surgery may allow women to choose breast-conserving surgery instead of a mastectomy (breast removal).
Stage 3
Also called locally advanced breast cancer, the tumor has spread to nearby tissues and lymph nodes, but not distant body sites. Treating the tumor with radiation before and after a mastectomy is the usual treatment option for stage 3 breast cancer.
Stage 4
Stage 4 breast cancer, or metastatic breast cancer, has reached distant body sites. Shrinking the tumor, relieving symptoms and prolonging life are the goals at this stage. At Goshen Center for Cancer Care, our team offers a variety of supportive therapies to improve your quality of life while living with stage 4 breast cancer.
Types of Breast Cancer
We combine surgical, radiation and medical therapies along with naturopathic medicines to treat common and rare breast cancers, including: