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TheBreastCancerInfo.com
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TheBreastCancerInfo.com
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History of breast cancer
Breast cancer may be one of the
oldest known forms of cancer tumors in humans. The oldest description of
cancer (although the term cancer was not used) was discovered in Egypt and
dates back to approximately 1600 BC. The Edwin Smith Papyrus describes 8
cases of tumors or ulcers of the breast that were treated by
cauterization, with a tool called "the fire drill." The writing says about
the disease, "There is no treatment." At least one of the described cases
is male. For centuries, physicians described similar cases in their
practises, with the same sad conclusion. It wasn't until doctors achieved
greater understanding of the circulatory system in the 17th century that
they could establish a link between breast cancer and the lymph nodes in
the armpit. The French surgeon Jean Louis Petit (1674-1750) and later the
Scottish surgeon Benjamin Bell (1749-1806) were the first to remove the
lymph nodes, breast tissue, and underlying chest muscle. Their successful
work was carried on by William Stewart Halsted who started performing
mastectomies in 1882. He became known for his Halsted radical mastectomy,
a surgical procedure that remained popular up to the 1970s. |
History of breast cancer
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