Breast cancer has emerged as a leading cancer among women in Africa, necessitating improved understanding of its management across the continent. Although previous studies have described regional trends in therapy, this review aims to summarize continent-wide management and focus specifically on surgical interventions. Current literature shows that the rates of surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy vary across different countries and institutions, indicating the need for greater use of standardized cancer treatment guidelines. Surgery, primarily modified radical mastectomy, is the most common form of therapy described. When chemotherapy is offered, the limited availability and cost of treatment lead to high rates of interruption and premature termination of cycles. Few patients have access to radiation or hormonal therapy because these treatments are not available in many countries. Significant delays in seeking treatment are common and contribute to patients presenting with advanced disease. Although limited infrastructure favors surgical management, interventions to improve early detection behavior, provide timely referrals to medical care, and initiate early treatment with access to clinically justified neo-adjuvant and adjuvant therapy are key to improving prognosis.

Despite similar areal BMD by DXA, GC-treated women had abnormal cortical and trabecular vBMD and microarchitecture at both the radius and tibia, including fewer trabecular plates, a less axially aligned trabecular network, lower trabecular connectivity, thinner cortices, and lower whole-bone stiffness. Further research into these abnormalities as mechanisms for fracture in GC-treated women is warranted.