General Surgery · Evidence depth: moderate
Breast Surgery
Ownership-sensitivity model
The 10 vectors of a physician career.
Every path is scored 0-100 across 10 critical dimensions using public-data signals, modeled assumptions, and verification prompts. Modeled estimate. Not a salary survey. See methodology.
65/100
Income ceiling
Income ceiling
Solid and highly reliable, but features lower RVU density than GI or Ortho.
The reality
Income is heavily dependent on whether you can secure ASC ownership to capture facility fees for lumpectomies and mastectomies.
The signal
Many breast surgeons are directly employed by massive hospital cancer centers, which strictly caps financial upside.
The catch
Provides a very comfortable living, but very rarely reaches the top-decile wealth of spine or interventional cardiology.
The verdict
Most surgeons in this field consider the lifestyle and emotional rewards well worth the income trade-off.
85/100
Lifestyle control
Lifestyle control
Excellent, offering one of the best schedules in the general surgery tree.
The reality
The practice is 100% elective and scheduled; breast cancer never requires emergency surgery at 3 AM.
The signal
You have immense power to control the pace of your clinic, your OR days, and your overall week.
The catch
The primary stressor in this field is the emotional burden of oncology, absolutely not the schedule.
The verdict
An elite option for those who want to be surgeons but also want a highly predictable family life.
Premium analysis
8 more dimensions scored, with the reasoning behind each
The scores are below. Premium adds what sits behind each one: the claim, the signal supporting it, the limitation that weakens it, and what it should change about your decision.
- Sleep / call burdenLower is better15/100
- Ownership / facility upsideHigher is better50/100
- Geography flexibilityHigher is better65/100
- Innovation / industry adjacencyHigher is better30/100
- Training opportunity costLower is better40/100
- Job-market densityHigher is better70/100
- Malpractice / litigation pressureLower is better40/100
- Burnout-mismatch riskLower is better30/100
Scores are modeled from the specialty module's evidence and are estimates, not measurements. Confidence and data depth are labeled inside every premium card.
DoctorCalculator modeled income structure
Derived model. DirectionalModeled base range
$405k - $515k
Clinic-heavy, lifestyle-favorable; below the GS average.
Production upside
Moderate–high
Clinic-dominant with predictable OR blocks; lifestyle-favorable at the cost of production ceiling.
Ownership upside
Moderate
Modest: practice ownership with in-office ultrasound/biopsy; most breast surgery is system-employed.
Salary-only gap
Moderate
Small gap. Clinic-heavy elective practice prices similarly employed or private.
Modeled estimate. Not a salary survey. Derived model. Directional only. Verify against real offers, contracts, and local mentors. Income scales with payer mix, ownership, and geography. See methodology.
Want the code-level view behind numbers like these? Open the RVU calculator for this specialty's procedures, CMS times, and locality-adjusted Medicare rates.
External benchmark reference
Verify independently~$420k
External benchmark reference - verify independently. Not ingested DoctorCalculator source data.
Best fit
- The Lifestyle-First Clinician. A good life on sane hours, and the math actually works.
Poor fit
- The Acute-Care Identity Seeker. Energized by intensity, emergencies, and high-stakes work.
This path is described at validated confidence (Evidence depth: moderate). Detailed evidence cards are added as the module is validated; we will not manufacture precision before then.