Sample

Breast cancer patients were eligible for the study if they met the following inclusion criteria: female, age ≥21, with a diagnosis of breast cancer, who had decided on a surgical option to treat their breast cancer. Patients were excluded from the study if they had bilateral cancer, a known BRCA mutation, known metastases, prior chest radiation, prior surgical treatment of this breast cancer, prior breast cancer, had not decided on a surgery, or planned to undergo neoadjuvant therapy. A clinical research coordinator approached eligible women at the time of their surgical consult at the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University. Interested women were enrolled in the study once they had chosen a surgical treatment for their cancer but prior to undergoing surgery. Targeted recruitment was used to ensure that approximately one-third of the sample intended to undergo CPM. The study occurred during 2014–2016 and was approved by the Northwestern University Internal Review Board. Written informed consent was obtained from all study participants.