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Worried about breast cancer? ... Don't be! You are in the right place to learn and understand everything about it.
Here you will find reliable, accurate breast cancer information about:
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Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among women between the ages of 20 and 59 worldwide. One out of eight women will develop breast cancer symptoms some time during her life, according to the National Breast Cancer Coalition (NBCC). Breast cancer is 3 times more common than all gynecologic malignancies put together.
Breast Cancer Development
Breast cancer occurs when a cell within a breast under-goes changes, that cause it to grow and divide un-controllably. Usually the cancer arises from tissue that forms milk ducts.
(1) At first, extra cells begin to form in this lining, a condition called hyperplasia (="too many cells").
(2) Then these cells become odd-looking and start filling the milk duct. In this stage the cancer is called ductal carcinoma in situ or pre-cancer.
(3) In about 1/3 of the cases, the cells develop the ability to break out of the duct and destroy tissue around it. Any tissue in the breast can be affected, and at that stage, it is called cancer.
Cancer cells can also spread, or metastasize, to other parts of the body through the bloodstream. These cells can travel to other tissues and spread new forms of tumors to main organs of the body such as:
the lungs, brain, bones or the liver. This is what actually causes death. |
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Types of Breast Cancer
Another step in educating yourself about breast cancer is to learn about the different forms. There are many different types of breast cancer, but the vast majority (over 80%) grow in either the milk ducts or the lobular (milk-producing) tissue, and are called ductal carcinoma and lobular carcinoma . Either type, if
diagnosed early enough, may be called "in situ", which means that the cancer has not invaded surrounding fatty tissues in the breast nor spread to other organs in the body. The outcome for the invasive or infiltrating version of either type
depends on many factors, such as the stage of the cancer, your age, and your general health.
Some other types of breast cancer, which appear less often, are:
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Medullary carcinoma. This type of infiltrating breast cancer accounts for about 5% of breast cancers. It has a rather well-defined, distinct boundary between tumor tissue and normal tissue, and special features, such as large cancer cells and the presence of immune system cells at the edges of the tumor.
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Inflammatory breast cancer. This type of invasive breast cancer accounts for about 1% to 3% of all breast cancers. It makes the skin of the breast look red, feel warm, and gives it a thick, pitted appearance.
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Tubular carcinoma. Tubular carcinomas are a special type of infiltrating breast carcinoma. They account for about 2% of all breast cancers and have a better prognosis than infiltrating ductal or lobular carcinomas.
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Paget's disease of the nipple. This type of breast cancer starts in the breast ducts, spreads to the skin of the nipple, and then to the areola, the dark circle around the nipple. It accounts for only 1% of all cases of
breast cancer. The skin of the nipple and areola often appears crusted, scaly, and red, with areas of bleeding or oozing. The woman may notice burning or itching.
Stages of Breast Cancer
If physicians talk about breast cancer, they may use such terms as "early" or "advanced". These terms are not medically precise (they may be used differently by different  doctors). Here is a general idea of how they apply to the official staging system and a short description of each:
Stage 0: This stage describes non-invasive breast cancer. There is no evidence of cancer cells breaking through to nor invading neighboring normal tissue.
Stage I: This stage describes invasive breast cancer in which both a tumor, measuring up to 2cm, AND no lymph nodes are involved.
Stage II: This stage describes invasive breast cancer in which a tumor measures 2-5cm, OR cancer has spread to the lymph nodes under the arm on the same side as the breast cancer.
Stage IIIA: This stage describes invasive breast cancer in which a tumor measures larger than 5cm, OR a tumor has spread to lymph nodes, and these nodes are clumping or sticking to one another or surrounding tissue.
Stage IIIB: This stage describes invasive breast cancer in which a tumor of any size has spread to the breast skin, chest wall, or internal mammary lymph nodes (located beneath the breast inside the chest) and includes inflammatory breast cancer.
Stage IV: This stage includes invasive breast cancer in which a tumor has spread beyond the breast, underarm, and internal mammary lymph nodes to main organs of the body, such as the lungs, brain, bones or liver.
Breast Cancer Prevention
Almost every woman worries about breast cancer and would like to do everything she can to reduce her chances of ever getting this disease. If you're
a woman who has already had breast cancer, you certainly want to do everything possible to never see that cancer again.
Get to know your own realistic level of risk and the common risk factors at Causes And Awareness of Breast Cancer! Then you can work on "undoing" any of the
risk factors that are in your control, and building up your defenses. To decrease your risk of having untreated breast cancer, you should undertake a breast self exam regularly.
Breast Cancer Diagnosis
An abnormal area, like a lump, or other changes in the breast can be caused by cancer or by other, less serious problems. To find out the cause of any of these signs or symptoms, a a doctor performs one or more of the physical exams described below.
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Palpation. By carefully feeling the lump and the tissue around it, the doctor can tell a lot about a lump, like its size, texture and whether it moves easily.
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Mammography. The breast is exposed to a small dose of radiation to produce an image of internal breast tissue. X-rays of the breast can yield important information about a breast lump.
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Ultrasonography. Using high-frequency sound waves, ultrasonography may reveal information about the shape, texture, and composition of tumors and cysts that cannot be seen on conventional x-ray studies.
Mammography |
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Ultrasonography |
Based on these exams, a doctor may decide, if no further tests are needed or if a removing of fluid or tissue from the breast is necessary (biopsy) to make a diagnosis.
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Needle biopsy. The doctor uses a needle to remove fluid or a small amount of tissue from a breast lump. This procedure may show whether a lump is a fluid-filled cyst (not cancer) or a solid mass (which may be cancer).
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Surgical biopsy. The surgeon removes the area of concern often along with a part of the surrounding, normal breast tissue. A pathologist examines the tissue under a microscope to check for cancer cells.
When cancer is present, a pathologist can tell what kind of cancer it is and whether it is invasive. Special laboratory tests of the tissue, for example, hormone receptor tests, can help predict whether the cancer is sensitive
to hormones. Positive test results mean that hormones may help the cancer grow, and that the cancer is likely to respond to hormonal therapy.
Breast Cancer Treatments
Today, most women with breast cancer are diagnosed at an early stage and they benefit from newer, more effective treatments. There are alternative treatments available for patients at all stages of breast cancer. Often more than one type of treatment is needed.
The common treatments used today are listed and described below.
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Surgery. This is not an alternative treatment and it is used for early breast cancer. Most women may choose between breast-conserving surgery (lumpectomy with radiation therapy) and removal of the breast (mastectomy).
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Radiation therapy. High-dose x-rays are used to destroy cancer cells or keep them from dividing and growing. Radiation therapy is sometimes used to shrink tumors before or instead of surgery and sometimes used along with chemotherapy.
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Chemotherapy. Anticancer drugs are used to kill or stop the growth of cancer cells. This therapy affects the whole body by going through the bloodstream and destroying all rapidly dividing cells.
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High-dose chemotherapy. High doses of anticancer drugs are used to kill cancer cells in cases of peripheral stem cell transplantation and bone marrow transplantation.
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Hormonal therapy. Hormones are used to prevent the growth, spread, or recurrence of breast cancer; this is often the best alternative treatment because some tumors depend on natural hormones to grow (estrogen or progesterone).
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Biological therapy (immunotherapy). Using the immune system to fight cancer or to lessen the side effects that may be caused by some cancer treatments. These treatments are designed to repair, stimulate, or increase the body's
natural ability to fight infections and cancer.
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