Breast Cancer is Scary Stuff!
INTRODUCTION: Breast Cancer is a disease in which cancerous cells form in the breast. It is the number one cause of death among women between 40 and 55 years of age, the second overall cause of death for women (exceeded only by lung cancer) and is rising worldwide. Breast cancer is more easily treated and usually curable if it is found early.
LUMPS: Most breast tumors (abnormal lumps or masses of tissue) are benign (not cancerous). Using the fingertips, a lump may be detected within the breast. If a lump in the breast is found, the doctor may need to cut out a small piece of the lump (biopsy).
There are four kinds of biopsies: Excisional Biopsy (The removal of all of a lump or suspect tissue); Incisional Biopsy (The removal of part of a lump or suspicious tissue); Needle Biopsy (The removal of part of a lump, suspicious tissue, or fluid, using a thin needle); Core Biopsy (The removal of part of a lump or suspect tissue using a wide needle).
A group of rapidly dividing cells may form a mass of extra tissue. For example, fibrocystic change is a relatively benign condition in which women develop cysts (accumulated packets of fluid), fibrosis (formation of scar-like connective tissue), lumpiness, areas of thickening, tenderness, or breast pain.
RISKS: Women who have an altered gene related to breast cancer and who have had cancer in one breast have a high risk of developing cancer in the other breast. These women also have an increased risk of developing ovarian cancer as well as other cancers.
Age and history of health can affect the risk of developing breast cancer. Each woman’s risk may be higher or lower, depending upon a number of factors, including family history, genetics, age of menstruation, and other factors that have yet to be identified. Breast feeding for several months also seems to reduce the risk.
TREATMENT: Treatment for breast cancer usually depends on the type of cancer and whether it has spread outside of the breast to the rest of the body. Treatment includes surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, and endocrine/anti-hormone therapy. Treatment for male breast cancer is usually a mastectomy, which is surgery to remove the breast.
CONCLUSION: Previously a malady that mostly afflicted white, affluent women in the industrial hubs of North America and Western Europe, breast cancer is now everywhere. But in China, as in most other emerging economies, it is a relatively new concern, something that both patients and doctors are only haltingly learning how to treat.
The latest age-specific data in Denmark show that the incidence of breast cancer is maximal for women born between 1945 and 1950, and is on the decline for women born more recently. More than 90 out of 100 women whose cancer is found early will be cured. The leading cause of breast cancer is said to be the use of anti-perspirant. The good news is that it is a disease that can be treated and cured.
