Holland is among the countries with the highest incidence of breast cancer. Increasing awareness of the danger is borne out by rapidly decreasing average diameter of primary tumors during the lase 15 years. The application of very strict pre- and peroperative criteria for operability resulted in a decrease of 15% of the clinically operable group, thereby avoiding therapeutically meaningless mutilation. Encouraging results of radiotherapy in inoperable cases are reported. Operative treatment consists of removal of the breast and axillary contents. Radiotherapy is applied only to the parasternal nodes.