An examination of the origins of medical approaches to breast cancer marks this disease as one of the most difficult to manage. As the early identification, diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer evolve, we will move to a time when each patient and their cancer can be assessed to determine unique patient-specific (personalized) approaches to therapy. Humans have attempted to manage breast cancer for millennia. Even today, the disease claims thousands of lives each year. In light of the increasingly sophisticated understanding of cancer diagnosis and treatment, together with our ultimate failure to offer a cure in the most difficult cases, it is instructive to reflect on the beginnings of our understanding.
Keywords: breast cancer; hormonal therapy; immunotherapy; seed and soil hypothesis.