Decision-making for primary breast cancer treatment.

Decision-making for breast cancer treatment is exceedingly complex. It depends on multiple variables: the woman's decision-making style, age, coping mechanisms, stage of disease, risk of recurrence, consideration for adjuvant therapy, state-of-the-art treatment recommendations, and personal preferences. This review, the first of a two-part series, addresses the informational needs of women with breast cancer. In "Treatment Options for Early Stage Breast Cancer" to be published in the August 1994 issue of MEDSURG Nursing, intervention strategies nurses can use to help meet these needs will be discussed.