The Evolution of Axillary Surgery in Breast Cancer-Towards De-escalation

The primary goals of axillary surgery in breast cancer are multifactorial and include ensuring accurate staging, guiding adjuvant therapy decisions, predicting recurrence, achieving local control, and, most importantly, improving overall survival.As axillary lymph node status remains a crucial prognostic indicator, there is a constant attempt to balance oncologic safety with reducing morbidity-particularly lymphedema-to enhance patients' quality of life.