Let's Know about Breast Cancer

Early detection

Some signs of breast cancer are—
1.New lump in the breast or underarm (armpit).
2.Thickening or swelling of part of the breast.
3.Irritation or dimpling of breast skin.
4.Redness or flaky skin in the nipple area or the breast.
5.Pulling in of the nipple or pain in the nipple area.
6.Nipple discharge other than breast milk, including blood.

7.Any change in the size or the shape of the breast.
8.Pain in any area of the breast.

Prevention

Research shows that lifestyle changes can decrease the risk of breast cancer, even in women at high risk. To lower your risk:

1. Limit alcohol.
2. Don't smoke.
3. Control your weight.
4. Be physically active.
5. Breast-feed.
6. Limit dose and duration of hormone therapy.

7. Avoid exposure to radiation and environmental pollution.
8. Eat Your Fruits & Vegetables.Avoid Birth Control Pills, Particularly After Age 35.
9. Find Out Your Family History.
10. Self breast Screening.

Treatment

A. Early diagnosis:
The time of diagnosis is an extremely stressful one for patients and caregivers. early diagnosis focus on providing timely access to cancer treatment by reducing barriers to care and improving access to effective diagnosis services

B. laboratory diagnosis:
1.clinical examination
2.mammography
3.ultrasonography of breast
4.FNAC or ultrasonography guided FNAC
5. Biopsy, core biopsy, Lumpectomy etc.

Causes

Breast cancer is always caused by a genetic abnormality which refers to a ‘mistake’ in the genetic material. However, only 5-10% cases of cancers are due to an abnormality inherited from one’s mother or father. Instead, 85-90% of breast cancers are due to genetic abnormalities that happen because of the aging process and the ‘wear and tear’ of life in general.
For women with a BRCA2 mutation, the risk is 69%. Breast cancer that is positive for the BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations tends to develop more often in younger women.

Risk factors-

1. Getting older: most breast cancers are diagnosed after age 50.
2. Genetic mutations : Women who have inherited these genetic changes are at higher risk of breast and ovarian cancer.
3. Reproductive history: Early menstrual periods before age 12 and starting menopause after age 55 expose women to hormones longer, raising their risk of getting breast cancer.
4. Having dense breasts: Dense breasts have more connective tissue than fatty tissue, which can sometimes make it hard to see tumors on a mammogram. Women with dense breasts are more likely to get breast cancer.
4. Personal history of breast cancer or certain non-cancerous breast diseases. Women who have had breast cancer are more likely to get breast cancer a second time. Some non-cancerous breast diseases such as atypical hyperplasia or lobular carcinoma in situ are associated with a higher risk of getting breast cancer.
5. Family history of breast or ovarian cancer: A woman’s risk for breast cancer is higher if she has a mother, sister, or daughter (first-degree relative).Having a first-degree male relative with breast cancer also raises a woman’s risk.
6. Previous treatment using radiation therapy: Women who had radiation therapy to the chest or breasts (like for treatment of Hodgkin’s lymphoma) before age 30 have a higher risk of getting breast cancer later in life.
7. Women who took the drug diethylstilbestrol (DES), Women whose mothers took DES while pregnant with them are also at risk.
8. Not being physically active: Women who are not physically active have a higher risk of getting breast cancer.
9. Being overweight: Older women who are overweight or obese have a higher risk of getting breast cancer than those at a normal weight.
10. Taking hormones: Some forms of hormone replacement therapy (those that include both estrogen and progesterone) taken during menopause can raise risk for breast cancer when taken for more than five years. Certain oral contraceptives (birth control pills) also have been found to raise breast cancer risk.
11. Reproductive history. Having the first pregnancy after age 30, not breastfeeding, and never having a full-term pregnancy can raise breast cancer risk.
12. Drinking alcohol: Studies show that a woman’s risk for breast cancer increases with the more alcohol she drinks.

About 1 in 8 U.S. women (about 12%) will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of her lifetime.

On average, women with a BRCA1 mutation have up to a 72% lifetime risk of developing breast cancer.

The overall death rate from breast cancer decreased by 1.3% per year from 2013 to 2017.

Only 5-10% cases of cancers are due to an abnormality inherited from one’s mother or father.

Early menstrual periods before age 12 and starting menopause after age 55 expose women to hormones longer, raising their risk of getting breast cancer.

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