"Emotional Therapy and Daily Life Recovery Important After Surgery" Eye-Catching at Ilsan CHA Hospital Breast Center

Under 10% of Breast Cancer Patients in Korea Are Under 40... Twice the Rate in Western Countries
Higher Survival Rates Increase Importance of Returning to Daily Life After Surgery and Treatment

Kang Seong-su, Director of the Breast Center at Ilsan CHA Hospital (center front row in the photo), is discussing treatment directions with professors from the departments of Pathology, Psychiatry, Radiology, and Radiation Oncology. This multidisciplinary care system aims to find the best treatment methods from diagnosis to examination, consultation, and surgery.

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] As the number of breast cancer patients increases among young people, interest has grown not only in early diagnosis but also in ways to return to daily life after surgery and treatment. For young breast cancer patients, early detection leads to a higher survival rate, making it important to maintain quality of life, including pregnancy and childbirth after cancer treatment.

According to the 2019 Breast Cancer White Paper published by the Korean Breast Cancer Society on the 26th, patients aged 40 and under account for about 10.5% (as of 2016) of breast cancer patients in Korea, which is more than twice the level of Western countries. The number of breast cancer patients, which was around 6,000 annually in the early 2000s, has exceeded 20,000 every year since 2013. Conversely, Korea's mortality rate is among the lowest in the world, which the medical community attributes to active diagnosis leading to early detection and the application of standardized treatment methods tailored to the characteristics of domestic patients. How patients live after treatment has also become an important factor.

The recently opened Breast Center at Ilsan CHA Hospital draws attention because, in addition to diagnosis and treatment, it applies a multidisciplinary care and integrative healing concept, keeping in mind various sequelae that may occur after treatment. At this center, patients can undergo basic breast examinations and receive consultation on the results on the same day, and if abnormalities are found, a biopsy is performed immediately on that day.

Once diagnosed with breast cancer, a dedicated coordinator and nurse quickly schedule the surgery. A multidisciplinary care system is operated where medical staff from radiology, radiation oncology, internal medicine, as well as obstetrics and gynecology, and psychiatry gather to determine the treatment direction, while also advising on the quality of life after treatment.

Kang Sung-soo, head of the Breast Center at Ilsan CHA Hospital, said, "Patients inevitably experience emotional difficulties due to feelings of loss from physical changes and fear of recurrence," adding, "We provide holistic treatment that manages all aspects."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.