A new study shows about 70 percent of women with the most common form of early-stage breast cancer can safely skip chemotherapy without hurting their chances of beating the disease.
The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, analyzed how well a widely used genetic test assessed cancer risk, based on 21 genes linked with breast cancer recurrence.
It found that an intermediate group of patients could bypass post-surgery chemo and be safely treated with just surgery and hormone therapy.
Chemotherapy is often used after surgery to help stop breast cancer from spreading or coming back, but side effects range from hair loss to permanent nerve pain.