Post-Treatment Management of Breast Cancer and Other Conditions: Expert Advice from 1969

In a 1969 document, various medical professionals provided advice on post-treatment management of breast cancer and other conditions. Dr. Arthur I. Holleb suggested that postoperative radiation therapy might be wise for a male breast cancer patient who had a simple mastectomy and modified axillary lymph node dissection, as residual involved nodes could be present. Dr. Thomas L. Dao advised against using testosterone to alleviate vasomotor symptoms in a female patient post-adrenalectomy for breast cancer, favoring reassurance and explanation over hormone therapy. Dr. Harold A. Kaminetzky recommended non-hormonal treatments for atrophic vaginitis in a postmenopausal patient with a history of radical mastectomy for cancer, suggesting estrogen cream only as a last resort. Dr. Philip Leavitt noted that anticoagulant-induced alopecia, as experienced by a 63-year-old woman, has no specific therapy and switching anticoagulants would likely not help. Lastly, Jerome T. Siedlecki discussed the potential for silicosis from exposure to silicon carbide in steel grinding, indicating that while traditional views considered it non-fibrogenic, some literature suggested further investigation was needed, and that cases attributed to silicon carbide might actually be due to other materials in the grinding process.