Abstract
The role of oophorectomy in the treatment of breast cancer is known for over 100 years. Ovarian ablation has a relatively large positive effect on both disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) in premenopausal women when compared to no adjuvant treatment. Today the standard of care in adjuvant therapy of endocrine responsive tumors in premenopausal women is tamoxifen with or without chemotherapy. The role of oophorectomy /ovarian ablation in current surgical practice is discussed and important issues highlighted in the article.