Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women and second leading cause of cancer death, exceeded only by lung cancer in 1985. One woman in eight who lives to age 85 develop breast cancer at some point during its life.
Currently there are over 2 million women living in the United States have been treated for breast cancer. About 41,000 women will die of this disease. The risk of dying from breast cancer is 1 in 33. However, the mortality rate from breast cancer is declining. This decrease is probably the result of early detection and improved treatment.
Breast cancer is not just a woman's disease. The American Cancer Society estimates that 1,600 men develop the disease each year and about 400 are likely to die of the disease.
the risk of breast cancer is higher among those who have a mother, aunt, sister or grandmother who had breast cancer before age 50. If only a mother or sister had breast cancer, the risk doubles. Having two first degree relatives who were diagnosed increases your risk up to five times the average.
Although it is not known what causes breast cancer, sometimes the culprit is a genetic mutation in one of two genes called BRCA1 and BRCA2. These genes normally protect against disease-producing proteins, which protect against abnormal cell growth, but women with the mutation, the risk of developing breast cancer may increase by as much as 80 percent compared with 13 percent of the population. In practice, more than 25 percent of women with breast cancer have a family history of disease.
Women do not have a family history of breast cancer risk is more difficult to identify. E 'known that estrogen fuels many breast cancers, and a number of factors - diet, obesity and alcohol consumption - can raise levels of estrogen in the body.
The first signs
The first signs of breast cancer:
- A mass that is usually single, firm and usually painless detected.
- An area of skin on the chest or the forearm is swollen and has an unusual appearance.
- The veins on the surface of the skin becomes more important on a breast.
- The inverted nipple is affected, rash, changes in skin texture, or other form of release of breast milk.
- Depression was found in parallel to the surface.
Types and stages of breast cancer
There are many varieties of breast cancer. Some are fast growing and unpredictable, while others grow more slowly and regularly. Some are stimulated by estrogen in the body, and some are caused by mutations in one of two genes previously mentioned - BRCA1 and BRCA2.
Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS): Generally divided into comedo (blackhead), where the cut surface of tumor cells showed extrusion of dead and necrotic tumor with a black dot, and the types of non-comedo. DCIS is early breast cancer that is confined within the ductal system. The distinction between comedo and comedo types is important not because comedo in situ generally behaves more aggressively and may show areas of microinvasion through the ductal wall into surrounding tissues.
Ductal: This is the most common type of breast cancer, which is 78 percent of all cancers. Mammography, these lesions can occur in two different forms - in the shape of a star (star-like) or well circumscribed (rounded). Star-scale damage is usually worse the prognosis.
Medullary carcinoma: This cancer is 15 percent of breast cancers. These lesions are usually well demarcated and may be difficult to distinguish fibroadenoma is a mammogram or ultrasound. With this kind of prognostic indicators of breast cancer of estrogen and progesterone receptor negative, 90 percent of the time. medullary carcinoma is usually a better prediction of breast cancer in others.
Lobular, representing 15 percent of breast cancers, these lesions usually appear in the upper outer quadrant of the breast as a subtle thickening and are difficult to diagnose by mammography. Infiltrating lobular can involve both breasts (bilateral). Microscopically, these tumors have a linear array of cells and grow around ducts and lobules.
Tubular carcinoma: This is described as an orderly or well-differentiated carcinoma of the breast. These lesions make up about 2 percent of breast cancer. They have a favorable prognosis with nearly 95 percent survival rate at 10 years.
Mucinous carcinoma, representing 2.1 percent of breast cancers and has a favorable prognosis. These lesions are usually well circumscribed (rounded).
Inflammatory Breast Cancer: This is a particularly aggressive breast cancer, which is usually evidenced by changes in the breast such as redness of the skin (erythema), thickening of the skin and hair follicles to remember the importance of orange peel . The diagnosis is by skin biopsy, which revealed the tumor lymphatic and vascular channels by about 50 percent of the time.
Steps to Breast Cancer
The most common type of breast cancer is ductal carcinoma. It begins in the lining of the airways. Another type, called lobular carcinoma, arises in the lobules. When cancer is found, the pathologist can tell what kind of cancer it is - if started in a conduit (channel) or a lobe (lobar) and whether it has invaded surrounding tissues in the breast (invasive).
When cancer is detected, special laboratory tests are usually made of cloth for more information about cancer. For example, hormone receptor tests (estrogen and progesterone) can help determine whether hormones help the cancer progression. If the results show that hormones affect cancer growth (a positive), cancer is likely to respond to hormonal therapy. This therapy deprives cancer cells of estrogen.
Other tests are sometimes done to help predict whether a tumor is likely to progress. For example, X-rays and other laboratory tests are carried out. Sometimes samples of breast tissue examined the gene, known as the human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER-2 gene), which is associated with an increased risk of recurrence of breast cancer. Special tests, bone, liver or lungs have done, because breast cancer can spread to these areas.
treatment options of a woman depends on several factors. These factors include her age and menopausal status, her general health, size and location of the tumor and stage of cancer, results of laboratory tests, and the size of her chest. Some features of tumor cells as if they are dependent on growth hormones, are also considered.
In most cases, the most important factor is the stage of the disease. The stage is based on the size of the tumor and whether the cancer has spread. The following brief descriptions of the stages of breast cancer and the treatments used in each phase. Other treatments may sometimes be appropriate.
Stage 0
Stage 0 is sometimes called noninvasive carcinoma or carcinoma in situ. lobular carcinoma in situ (LCI) refers to abnormal cells lining the lobule. These abnormal cells are rarely invasive cancer. They are, however, the indicator of increased risk of developing breast cancer in both breasts. LCI is a drug called tamoxifen therapy, which can reduce the risk of breast cancer. A person who has been affected by the treatment might not want to go, but monitor the situation of having regular checkups. And sometimes, the decision is that of a surgery to remove both breasts an attempt to prevent the occurrence of cancer. In most cases, the removal of axillary lymph nodes is not necessary.
ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) refers to abnormal cells lining the canal. DCIS is also called intraductal carcinoma. abnormal cells do not spread to the channel to invade surrounding breast tissue. However, women in DCIS have an increased risk of invasive breast cancer. Some women have DCIS breast-sparing surgery after radiotherapy. Alternatively, they may choose not to breast-feed, with or without breast reconstruction (plastic surgery) to build a case. axillary lymph nodes are usually removed. In addition, women in DCIS may want to consult a doctor with tamoxifen reduces the risk of developing invasive breast cancer.
Phase I and II
Stages I and II are the early stages of breast cancer, where cancer has spread beyond the lobe or duct and invaded nearby tissues.
Stage I means the tumor is about an inch in size and tumor cells have spread to the chest.
Phase II: one of the following:
Breast cancer is less than 1 inch in size and the cancer has spread to lymph nodes under the arm.
The tumor is between 1 and 2 inches (with or without spread to lymph nodes under the arm).
The tumor is larger than 2 inches, but has not spread to lymph nodes under the arm.
Treatment options for breast cancer is early surgery pregnant savings followed by radiotherapy to the breast and mastectomy, with or without breast reconstruction to rebuild the breast. These methods are also effective in treating early stage breast cancer. (Sometimes, radiotherapy is also given after mastectomy.)
Choice of breast sparing surgery or breast cancer depends mainly on the size and location of the tumor, breast size, some features of cancer, and how the person thinks of preserving the breast. Both approaches, the lymph nodes under the arm usually are removed.
Chemotherapy and / or hormonal therapy after primary treatment with surgery or surgery and radiotherapy is recommended for Phase I and more often stage II breast cancer. This added treatment is called adjuvant therapy. Systemic therapy is sometimes given to shrink the tumor before surgery is called neoadjuvant therapy. It is given to try to destroy any remaining cancer cells and prevent cancer recurrence or recur in the breast or elsewhere.
Phase III
Phase III is also called locally advanced cancer. At this stage, the tumor in the breast may occur in the following:
More than 2 inches in diameter and the cancer has spread to lymph nodes under the arm.
Cancer is a major axillary lymph nodes.
The cancer spreads to lymph nodes near the breast bone or other tissues near the breast.
Inflammatory breast cancer is a type of locally advanced breast cancer. This type of cancer, breast cancer appears red and swollen (or inflamed) because cancer cells block the lymph vessels in breast skin.
Patients with breast cancer stage III usually have local treatment to remove or destroy the breast and systemic treatment to stop the disease from spreading. Local treatment may be surgery and / or radiation to the chest and forearm. Systemic treatment may be chemotherapy, hormonal therapy, or both. Systemic treatment may be given before local therapy to shrink the tumor or after to prevent disease recurrence in the breast or elsewhere.
Stage IV
Stage IV is metastatic cancer. Cancer that has spread to the breast and axillary lymph nodes in other parts of the body.
The treatment of breast cancer is stage IV chemotherapy and / or hormonal therapy to destroy cancer cells and fight disease. Patients may have surgery or radiation therapy against breast cancer. Radiation can also be useful to control tumors in other parts of the body.
Cancer Recurrence
Recurrent cancer means the disease has recurred despite initial treatment. Even if a breast tumor seems to have been completely removed or destroyed, the disease recurs sometimes because undetected cancer cells remained somewhere in the body after treatment.
Most rehearsals will appear in the first 2 or 3 years after treatment, but breast cancer can recur many years later.
Cancer that returns only in the field of surgery called a local recurrence. If the disease returns in another part of the body, repetition is a metastatic breast cancer. The patient may have a type of therapy or a combination of treatments for recurrent cancer.