
Welcome to
NorthStar Surgery
The mission of NorthStar Surgery Specialists, P.A. is to promote health care by providing excellent emergency and elective general surgery services to the Austin metro and surrounding areas.
Dr. Vineet Choudhry is a specialist in the treatment of breast cancer and breast disease.
Breast Cancer Surgery
But, what is breast cancer?
It is when the breast cells start to grow or divide abnormally. These cells can form a breast tumor or cyst that can be felt as a lump or seen through ultrasound and mammograms. The tumor becomes cancerous if it grows inside surrounding tissue and/or if it spreads throughout other body areas (metastasis).
- On average, every 2 minutes a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer and 1 woman will die of breast cancer every 13 minutes.
Breast Cancer Facts. (2016).  Retrieved from http://www.nationalbreastcancer.org/breast-cancer-facts

The American Cancer Society estimates that by 2018 there will be 266,120 new cases of breast cancer in the U.S. and 18,260 new cases of breast cancer diagnosed in Texas. An early diagnosis can allow a shorter treatment, a lower mortality risk, and save lives. Minimally invasive surgery in Texas is possible, thanks to the breast cancer specialist Vineet Choudhry, MD FACS.
What are the signs & symptoms of breast disease?
Feeling a lump, node or mass on one of the breasts that can be painless or feel painful to touch. These protuberances can be round or irregular
Swelling of a part of the breast or the entire breast, even if no lump is felt
Irregular appearance on the breast skin, especially dimpling (similar to the appearance of cellulite and/or orange skin)
Skin irritation
Nipple discharge that is not breast milk
An inverted or retracted nipple (a nipple that faces inward)
Color change, especially redness
Scaliness or thickening of any part of the breast or the entire breast
Swollen lymph nodes felt around armpits and close to the collarbone
Breast, areola, or nipple pain
Breast Cancer Signs and Symptoms. (2018). Retrieved from
https://www.cancer.org/cancer/breast-cancer/about/breast-cancer-signs-and-symptoms.htmlÂ
Breast Cancer Case Study
Breast Cancer Specialist
Breast Cancer & Breast Disease Treatment
If a patient develops breast disease of any kind, Dr. Vineet Choudhry as a Breast Specialist can determine and recommend the best treatment option. Some of these options include surgical procedures such as lumpectomy or mastectomy, as well as non-surgical procedures such as cryoablation.
- Breast Biopsy
- Lumpectomy
- Mastectomy
- Traditional Axillary Lymph Node Dissection
- Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy
- Cryoablation
Needle Biopsy :Â If the doctor can feel the lump, he would insert a large needle and draw the lump sample inwards through suction.
Stereotactic Core Biopsy : If the suspicious breast tissue cannot be felt but can be seen through a mammogram or MRI, the patient would lay on a table facing down and a radiologist would take a sample of the suspicious tissue through the guidance of a special mammogram or MRI machine using a large bore hollow needle.
Ultrasound-guided Biopsy :Â If the suspicious breast tissue can be felt or seen on ultrasound, the physician can use high-frequency ultrasound waves to capture live images of the suspicious tissue and remove a sample through a large bore hollow needle.
Surgery Biopsy:  It is used to remove a suspicious lump entirely or partly, so it can be checked to determine if it contains cancerous cells in it.  There are 2 types of surgical biopsies:
- An incisional biopsy removes only a part of the abnormal area to make a diagnosis.
- An excisional biopsy removes the entire lump or suspicious area. A section of the normal breast tissue around the lump may be taken for examination, too, depending on the reason for the biopsy.
If a patient is diagnosed with breast cancer after the biopsy, Dr. Vineet Choudhry as a breast specialist can recommend the best treatment option. Several different treatment options exist, such as lumpectomy, mastectomy, traditional axillary lymph node dissection, sentinel lymph node biopsy, and now a very minimally invasive cryoablation procedure.
A lumpectomy is a form of “breast-conserving” surgery that aims to preserve the breast by removing the tumor and some of the tissue that surrounds it. But the amount of tissue removed can vary greatly depending on the case. The majority of women who have the possibility to choose between mastectomy or lumpectomy prefer lumpectomy since it is less invasive. A lumpectomy is preformed with a less invasive penetration than traditional surgery procedures, therefore it reduces side effects, the risk of cutaneous flap necrosis, infections, postoperative pain, minimizes scarring and increases the quality of life due to its fast recovery.Â
“It is a procedure performed to treat breast cancer by removing the entire breast through surgery. It’s often done when a woman cannot undergo breast-conserving surgery (lumpectomy), which spares most of the breast tissue. It can also be done if a woman chooses a mastectomy over breast-conserving surgery for personal reasons. Women at very high risk of getting cancer for the second time sometimes choose to have a double mastectomy, which implies the removal of both breasts.” Some women are also candidates to have a nipple-sparing (preserving) mastectomy, and most women can also get immediate breast reconstruction depending on the case.
Mastectomy. (2017, September 13).  Retrieved from
https://www.cancer.org/cancer/breast-cancer/treatment/surgery-for-breast-cancer/mastectomy.html
A lymph is a clear fluid that contains white cells and travels through the body’s arteries, circulates through tissues to cleanse them, and then drains them through the lymphatic system. Lymph nodes are the filters along the lymphatic system. Their job is to filter and trap bacteria, viruses, cancer cells and other unwanted substances.
A traditional lymph node dissection usually removes most if not all of the lymph nodes within the axillary (armpit) region. This type of breast surgery may accompany a mastectomy through the same incision or a lumpectomy through a separate incision.Â
Sentinel lymph node biopsy is an alternative to traditional axillary lymph node dissection, in which the surgeon searches for the first lymph node that filters the fluid drainage from the breast area that contains cancerous cells. If the cancer cells detach from the tumor and move away from the breast through the lymphatic system, a pathologist will carefully examine them for any cancer signs.
It is an office-based procedure that does not require general anesthesia and uses extreme cold to get rid of cancerous tumors through a cryoprobe. A cryoprobe is a large bore needle that resembles a biopsy needle which is inserted directly into the tumor to freeze it. Once the tissue is frozen, the tumor cells die and the body reabsorbs the tissue since it is perceived as a foreign body. The immune response generated after the procedure may aid the body to fight additional cancer cells if the tumor was cancerous. Not all women are candidates for cryoablation. Benign breast lumps have to be small enough and far enough away from the skin to freeze. For breast cancer, cryoablation should only be performed and small unifocal tumors not larger than 15 mm and for patient over the age of 50.
Breast Cancer Testimonial
Cryoablation
A novel treatment for benign and cancerous breast tumors
Cryoablation for Benign Breast Tumors
Benefits of cryoablation
Many women are choosing cryoablation over lumpectomy for their breast tumor.
Excellent cosmetic results
Minimally invasive
Local anesthesia
In-office procedure
No tissue deficit
Short recovery time (back to normal activity the next day)
Cryoablation for Breast Cancer
FROST Study
The FROST Clinical Study examines the use of cryoablation as an alternative to surgery in the treatment of early stage breast carcinoma.
To participate in the study you must have the following :
An age of 50 or older
A breast cancer diagnosis
A lesion no larger that 1.5 cm in the greatest diameter
Early stage breast cancer that has not spread to other organs
Cancer that is strongly sensitive to estrogen
Cryoablation Testimonial
Contact Us

Vineet Choudhry, MD F.A.C.S.
Vineet Choudhry was born near Chicago and has lived in various places growing up such as Kansas City and San Francisco. However, he moved to Ft. Worth, Texas in 1984 and now considers himself a native Texan. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry from the University of Texas at Austin in 1997. He then received his medical degree at Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine. After successfully completing his specialty training residency in General Surgery at the University of Kansas School of Medicine in Wichita, Kansas, he returned to Austin in 2008 to open his medical practice. Over the years since then, he has among other things specialized in the care and treatment of breast disease.
Learn more about Vineet Choudhry by visiting NorthStar Surgery Specialists Website.
Call Office Today!
 (512) 491-6542
Write An Email
 vchoudhry@northstarsurgery.com
Office Address
2217 Park Bend Dr. Suite 220
Austin, TX, 78758