All about Breast Cancer

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How to Prevent Your Breast Cancer

2010-04-12T19:08:00.000-07:00

Breast cancer is a complicated disease, and lots of other things besides bra wearing contribute to it. The following tips make clear a number of other things you could do to assist how prevent breast cancer.

There is no convinced method to prevent breast cancer. But there are things all women could make that may decrease their risk and assist add to the odds that if cancer does happen, it is discovered at an early, more treatable stage.

Drugs like anastrozole, letrozole, and exemestane are being studied too as breast cancer chemopreventive agents in post-menopausal women. These drugs are already being utilized to assist prevent breast cancer reappearances. They act by blockading the creation of small amounts of estrogen that post-menopausal women usually make. But they could have side effects as well, like leading to joint pain and stiffness and bone loss, causing a higher risk of osteoporosis. None of these drugs is accepted for decreasing the risk of rising breast cancer at this time.

The proof is so convincing that consuming omega-3 fatty acids assists prevent breast cancer, and that the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats in diet is significant. One ought to not use too much of omega-6 fats with regard to omega-3 fats. The typical western diet contains up to 20 times as much omega-6 fats as it does omega-3s; the optimum ratio for health is more like 4:1. The beneficial omega-3 fats won't run almost as well in keeping you from cancer if the diet contains many omega-6 fats. This fat issue is a main factor in heart disease as well.

Research on soy and breast cancer presents a differing picture. Several studies have revealed a protecting effect, lots of have not. One study discovered that the major phytoestrogens in soy, genistein and daidzein, stimulated breast tumor development in laboratory and in animals at low attentiveness but had the conflicting effect at high concentrations. In yet another study, soy and curcumin jointly produced a 100% effect in preventing tumor development.

The reality that Japanese consume soy and have very low breast cancer a rate is frequently employed to confirm that soy could assist prevents breast cancer. But traditional Japanese diets differ from standard Western diets in several methods thus it can be something else that is leading to that. For instance, they eat many fish and seaweed. In addition, Japanese consume soy in fermented form, and typically simply as side dishes, in small amounts, and not as major staple.

Does Vitamin E Prevent Breast Cancer? LE Magazine May 2002 In-depth coverage based on reconsidering the scientific studies made regarding vitamin E and breast cancer. Proof points to the form of vitamin E called tocotrienols as effective in preventing breast cancer - and not alpha-tocopherol (the one usually on hand as a supplement).

Knowing Your Breast Cancer Treatment Options

2010-03-30T16:40:00.000-07:00

With each passing day there are being more discoveries made regarding breast cancer treatment options, and if you or someone you know has been afflicted with this condition, it is important to know what you can do to stop it. This article will give you some great tips on various methods that are currently being utilized in the medical field to treat breast cancer patients successfully.

The first option that you will want to consider involves radiation treatment. This is a type of treatment that is used for many different types of cancer, and continues to be effective in eliminating it from the body, sometimes completely. There is also chemotherapy, but you will have to be aware of all the various side-effects that accompany it, such as nausea and lack of appetite. Managing these side-effects can sometimes be difficult, so discuss all of them in detail with your doctor before beginning.

It is important to understand the treatments that can be used on this type of cancer depend almost entirely on how much the cancer has advanced and spread. Your doctor will be able to tell you what all of your different options are at that particular point in time, because things can change very quickly. That is why cancer patients are required to check in with a doctor so frequently.

When you are considering radiation therapy, you should know that it is done a short time after the initial surgery, and is administered to the patient in high doses to directly kill the cancer cells that have formed. One of the best things about radiation treatment is that it can kill cancer cells that have been left behind from the surgery. Although surgery is effective most of the time, it's always good to have a back up plan just in case.
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By Scott Byers
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Never Be Afraid of Breast Cancer Again

2010-03-21T17:01:00.000-07:00

While I was doing some research on the Internet I came across an article about breast cancer. This article was explaining how early detection was a determining factor in winning the battle with breast cancer. The article was talking about how calcium deficiency expresses itself in calcium malformations in breasts. This is to say that calcium deficient persons would get calcium deposits in their breasts, which would then turn into cancer.

Is this really what happens?

This article is dedicated to my mom and all the women out there, who are willing to learn the truth about breast cancer and save themselves.

Cause of every disease is acidic body. Because of bad diet habits, like eating junk food and poor quality food, or eating to much protein, thus having to much nitrogen waste, our lymphatic fluids become acidic. In order to remove that acid and store it away, to prevent vital organ damage, our body envelopes it in fat tissue. This is why breasts are the target most of the time.

At this point, if unhealthy habits were to be continued, acidity of the body would become greater. In last attempt to save our life, our body would form calcium deposits. Calcium is drawn from the bones and is deposited in breasts to buffer the excess acid. Calcium which is alkaline, will react with these acids and form salts which are neutral. Mission accomplished. This is what official medicine is looking for at mammogram exam, to find these deposits. According to them, these calcium deposits, later become cancer.

This is wrong. Calcium deposits in breasts are not early signs of formation of breast cancer, but they are rather defense mechanism our body uses to save us from acid. To put out the fire, so to speak. Of course if bad eating habits were not stopped, and acidity of the body became even greater, cellular structure would change to adapt to new changed environment, it would mutate into what is known as cancer.

What can we do to prevent breast cancer or to cure it? We have to learn to alkalize by eating alkaline foods rich in alkaline minerals. Alkaline minerals will react and neutralize these acids. No acids, no cancer. It is that simple. Two alkaline minerals needed the most, which majority of population is short of, are calcium and magnesium. Magnesium is very important to remove nitrogen waste from the liver and kidneys. For healing electro magnetic energy to be released, in order to cure, all alkaline minerals must react against all acids present, fat and water soluble. This is why I would recommend kelp as sure winner in preventing and stopping breast cancer. Kelp is complex carbo-hydrate and it contains absolutely all alkaline minerals and trace minerals. If you supply your body with enough alkaline minerals, by eating enough kelp, chances of getting breast cancer are nonexistent.
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Author: Zoran Jovanovic

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Triple Negative Breast Cancer

2010-03-19T16:58:00.000-07:00

Breast cancer is a bad, sometimes frightening diagnosis at any time but a triple negative breast cancer diagnosis is particularly disturbing. Generally speaking, this cancer is defined in terms of a receptor which reveals specific genes. The three receptors are estrogen, progesterone and Her2.
The type of receptor determines the type of medicine prescribed for the patient to best attack the cancer. But if the diagnosis comes up negative for all three receptors, the medical response is more difficult. How can you attack a particular receptor if it doesn't exist? Receptors help the cancerous cells to multiply and in order to best tackle them, a specific medicine is required.

But it is not all bad news because there are other drugs which can still be found to work. Finding the correct drug is the tricky task but once found, it can have a success rate which compares favorably with those using standard responses. Chemotherapy has been found to work successfully with triple negative breast cancer patients and the best medicine has thus far proved to be a combination of drugs. Because triple negative breast cancer is a relatively new discovery by doctors, a particular drug has yet to be announced. One line of treatment is to use drugs in chemotherapy which are not usually used for treatment in the early stages of breast cancer therapy.

Triple negative cancer does have certain characteristics. It is an aggressive cancer, it is found more in younger than older women, it is more likely to develop into metastatic breast cancer and is more likely to be found in women of African and Hispanic descent. This is interesting because, generally speaking, African American women have fewer incidents of cancer of any type than do white American women. Clinical trials are currently being carried out using patients with triple negative cancer. The future for better results is always hopeful. It needs to be understood that trials are not held over a few weeks or even months but rather years. One current trial is being run over a period of six years.

Recent studies indicate that of all breast cancers discovered, about 15% will be triple negative breast cancers. Taken as a whole, triple negative breast cancers have a high rate of secondary cancers or metastatic cancer and in many cases the additional tumor is found in the brain.

There are several unpleasant aspects to the triple negative cancer scenario - its high rate of recurrence, resistance to standard medicines in chemo, its aggressive nature and potential to become metastatic cancer. But there is a concerted effort by cancer specialists around the world to discover much more about this special type of breast cancer. Clinical trials are on-going, results are being shared and progress is being made. Women who have been diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer are urged to join a support group particularly those online because it enables you to learn much from many. Hearing from those who have gone through what you are now experiencing can be stimulating and a real boost to your spirits.

As isolated as you may feel right now, you are not alone. Cancer diagnosis is no longer the end of the story. Cancer survivors prove every day that this can be the beginning of a whole new positive chapter in your life. Visit my site to access a series of interviews with CANCER SURVIVORS, people like you, who managed to fight cancer and win their battle. It's absolutely FREE, no strings attached.

Looking at Some Breast Cancer Protection Tips to Use

2010-03-11T16:52:00.001-08:00

Looking at some breast cancer protection tips that everyone out there should use. These are ways that you can catch the problem of breast cancer early and fight it. A way that you may find that lump in time and not have to get surgery.

One of the best ways to combat the problem of breast cancer is through the self exam. It is something that you should ask the doctor about and begin in your life all the time. As you age you should do the self exam more often, and combine it with these other tips to follow.

Mammograms are needed after you get to a certain age. Around the age of 40 they say that you should begin getting these each year. But if you have a history of breast cancer in your family begin it before that time.

Get those Pap smears done each year, and your yearly exam. They say that you should start these each year after you've reached the age of 30. Most women will avoid these exams often but you should really use this as a way of noticing if you have problems.

Colonoscopy is another step that should be used to look for cancer. Though it's not in the cancer that they are looking for in the breast here. Keeping your body free from cancer can avoid it spreading to other areas of the body.

The most important tips for cancer and keeping it out of your life is to continually get those checkups. Not only do the self examination and check for lumps on your own body. But ask your husband to help you out. They may be more aware than you are of where the lumps come up.

Get the mammogram when it is required and if you find a lump don't hesitate to head into the doctor. It's better to check it out and be safe than leave it be and find out you could have stopped it.

For more great information on breast cancer protection ways to prevent breast cancer just click on one of the links and you will discover what you need to know.

Signs of Breast Cancer - Knowing Them Before It's Too Late

2010-03-09T16:46:00.000-08:00

One of the main reasons why most breast cancer patients are not surviving this treatment is because they do not know that they have this disease in the first place. Because of this, they were not able to undergo treatments in order to stop the growth of cancer early on. With this the following are the signs of breast cancer you should be aware of.

The most common signs of breast cancer are the lumps that you can feel when you have been doing some self examinations on your breasts. The doctors will be able to feel this once your doctor does a physical exam on you during your physical exam. Once they have felt a lump, they will have it tested in order to find out if it is a malignant or benign tumor. Just the same, doctors will be able to check out on mass growth on the breasts through routine mammograms. In this way, they would see whether there are some malignant formations that cannot be felt by the hand.

Other signs that you should watch out for on your breast is the size and the shape. With this, you can try to suspect that the immediate change might be caused by cancer cells growing in your breasts. Aside from this, the breasts' skin should also be checked for any markings or dimpling.

Aside from just the breasts itself, the nipples should also be checked. One of the common signs on the nipples is its inversion. Once you noticed that there is this change on your nipples, you should start consulting your physician immediately. Aside from this you should also take note of nipple discharge.

Other symptoms may also include the Paget's disease. The symptoms of this disease are eczema type symptoms such as redness, itching and burning and even some tingling feeling. This may be taken for granted as the symptoms may just be regular eczema. However, there are cases that women who have this disease also have breast lumps.

Since breast cancer is a type of cancer, you can also consider other cancer symptoms such as unexplained weight loss, swollen lymph nodes and even joint pains as something connected to this disease.

Once one or more of these symptoms were detected, it is very important for people to have these checked immediately in order to do proper work up. Keep in mind that these symptoms may not only be indicative of cancer but also of other diseases. And the breast-specific symptoms may also be an indication of benign diseases of the breasts. Through early check up and detection, you will be able to undergo treatments that will prevent the growth of the lump or the spread of the cancer cells and thus preventing it to grow to its next stage. This will help the women to survive this breast disease.

Overall, these signs of breast cancer should be known to everyone so they would be able to stop this disease from affecting a number of women in the country through early treatments.
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We all need to understand a bit more exactly what what is cancer, so feel free to read more about chemotherapy treatment.

By Joaquin Costa

Chemotherapy Treatment for Breast Cancer

2010-02-04T22:07:00.000-08:00

In cancer treatment, chemotherapy refers to the use of drugs to kill or slow the growth of rapidly multiplying cells, like cancerous cells.

Chemotherapy usually includes a combination of drugs, since this is more effective than a single drug given alone. There are many drug combinations used to treat breast cancer. Ask your doctor for specific information and side effects you can expect from your chemotherapy medications.

How Is Chemotherapy Given for Breast Cancer?

For breast cancer, chemotherapy drugs are given intravenously (directly into a vein) or orally (by mouth). Once the drugs enter the bloodstream, they travel to all parts of the body in order to reach cancer cells that may have spread beyond the breast -- therefore chemotherapy is considered a "systemic" form of breast cancer treatment.

Chemotherapy is given in cycles of treatment followed by a recovery period. The entire chemotherapy treatment generally lasts several months to one year, depending on the type of drugs given.

When Is Chemotherapy Given for Breast Cancer?

When breast cancer is limited to the breast or lymph nodes, chemotherapy may be given after a lumpectomy or mastectomy. This is known as adjuvant treatment and may help reduce the chance of breast cancer recurrence.

Chemotherapy may also be given as the main treatment for women whose cancer has spread to other parts of the body outside of the breast and lymph nodes. This spread is known as metastatic breast cancer and occurs in a small number of women at the time of diagnosis, or when the cancer recurs some time after initial treatment for localized (non-metastatic) breast cancer.

Chemotherapy may also be given before surgery to shrink a tumor.

Can I Still Work During Chemotherapy for Breast Cancer?

Yes. Most people are able to continue working while they are being treated with chemotherapy for their breast cancer. It may be possible to schedule your treatments later in the day or right before the weekend so they don't interfere as much with your work schedule. You may have to adjust your work schedule while receiving chemotherapy, especially if you have side effects.

How Will I Know Chemotherapy Is Working?

Some people may think that their chemotherapy treatment is not working if they do not experience side effects. This is just a myth.

If you are receiving adjuvant chemotherapy (after surgery that removed all of the known cancer), it is not possible for your doctor to directly determine whether the treatment is working because there are no tumors left to assess. However, adjuvant chemotherapy treatments have proved helpful in studies in which some women were given chemotherapy while others were not.

After completing adjuvant therapy, your doctor will evaluate your progress through periodic physical exams, routine mammography, and appropriate testing if a new problem develops. If you are receiving chemotherapy for metastatic disease, progress will be monitored by blood tests, scans, and/or X-rays.
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source: webmd.com

Types of Cancer Radiation Therapies

2010-01-17T19:34:00.000-08:00

Cancer radiation therapy is a very important part of treating cancer today. It is a fact that almost half of all cancer patients being treated will undergo radiation as a part of their cancer treatment. It is therefore essential to understand what cancer radiation therapy involves, how it is utilized to treat cancer, what the side effects are and how to successfully deal with them.

What is radiation and how does it help
Energy carried by a stream or waves of particles is called radiation. This can alter or change genes and molecules of a cell. Thus, cancerous cell genes can be damaged by radiation inhibiting their growth and division. Therefore cancer radiation therapy is generally used to destroy cancer and shrink cancerous tumors in the body.

This type of radiation works better on cells that are active and quickly divide than on cells that are inactive or resting or slow dividing stage (in the G0 stage). Cancer cells usually divide very quickly and are uncontrollable. Radiation therapy kills these cells but also affects tissues of normal dividing cells, causing side effects. Thus every time a patient undergoes cancer radiation therapy the treatment involves a balance between sparing the healthy cells and destroying the cancerous ones.

This types of Cancer takes days or even weeks before the cancerous or normal cells begin to be killed and sometimes they even die months after the treatment has ended. This is the reason for side effects that are long-term in nature. Though at first it was believed that radiation therapy for cancer could not be given to a particular area more than once on account of the damage to healthy cells, recent study and research shows that a second cancer radiation therapy course can be administered in the treatment area for some cases.

Types of Radiation are:

• Ionizing radiation that can kill and destroy cells and change genes to stop cancer cells from growing. These are of two types:

1. Photons (gamma and x rays)
2. Particle radiation (protons, neutrons, electrons, alpha and beta particles)

The more energy this radiation has, the deeper it can penetrate the tissues. The right type of radiation is selected by a "radiation oncologist".

• Non-ionizing radiation which involves Radio waves, Light waves and Microwaves that do not have that much energy and is unable to ionize cancer cells

Common sources of treatment are:

• High-energy photons: These come from sources like cesium, cobalt, a linear accelerator etc. This is the most common treatment used today.

• Particle beams: These are produced by a linac (linear accelerator). Also, known as electron beams, they are utilized for cancer tumors that are not deeply embedded in tissues but are close to the surface.

• Proton beams: A new form of particle beam radiation. Protons do not cause a lot of damage to normal tissues as they penetrate but kill cells in their path. Thus they cause few side effects while delivering more radiation to cancer cells.

• Neutron Beams: Used for the prostate, neck and head they are helpful when other cancer radiation therapy does not work.

Some of the major side effects of cancer radiation are extreme fatigue, skin damage and discoloration, throat and mouth problems. When certain areas like the brain, lungs are treated, then the side effects can vary and range from memory loss to nausea and vomiting.
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5 Effective Practices - Alternative Breast Cancer Treatment

2009-11-30T12:39:00.000-08:00

Breast cancer is the second major reason causing death among women these days. It is caused due to the origination of cancer cells in the tissues of breast. The risk factors being unknown, about 70 to 80% of women are been affected worldwide. Researches indicate that the chances of getting breast cancer are high among women who are aged above 50. The risk factors include:

* Genetics
* Prolonged estrogen exposure
* Aging in women (also in men)
* Changing food habits & lifestyle
* Environment

Hormonal treatments/radiation treatments used for treatment of any other medical complications.

Routine breast cancer treatments include surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy hormonal and biological therapies like Taxmoxifen and Herceptin. The National Centre for Complementary and Alternative Medicines had identified and recognized the following treatments:

* Mind-Body medicine: These practices involve mind's capability to influence the body's functions. They are meditation, yoga, imagery, visualization, music therapy and art therapy.
* Biological practices: These practices include in-take of nutritional supplements, herbs, green tea and vitamins.
* Whole medical systems: They include the various cultural based medical systems followed worldwide. To name some are acupuncture (Chinese based), Ayurveda (Indian based which involves herbs, massage and yoga), western medical systems like Homeopathy and naturopathy.
* Manipulative and body based practices: These include massage therapy, chiropractic and osteopathic manipulation.
* Energy medicine: This involves Qigong and Reiki. Qigong therapy involves the surrounding of an energy field which infuses the body. It includes qigong (energy cultivation) an ancient Chinese system of postures, exercises, breathing techniques and meditation.

Though studies/researches indicate that these alternative breast cancer treatments do not provide complete cure, it is very appealing to the breast cancer patients that it relieves stress even during illness. The patients normally tend to hide the alternative treatment details to their doctors fearing non-supportive or a negative reaction. In order to obtain the best form of health it is necessary to merge both the alternative breast cancer treatment with the regular medical treatment.

Natural treatments work not only for curing breast cancer, but for curing all cancers practically. But knowledge is of prime essence. The most important thing to know is that chemotherapy, radiation, drugs and surgery are not the only options. Women CAN be cured of breast cancer naturally. So get rid of your fears about breast cancer. If you want to find more information about alternative breast cancer treatment and learn much more about curing cancer naturally.

Smart Ways To Enhance Your Sexuality After Breast Cancer

2009-11-28T21:37:00.000-08:00

People go through a lot of physical and emotional pain after being diagnosed with cancer. The pain does not easily go away even after treatment. The effects of cancer in our bodies are far reaching. It affects how partners view women as sexual beings. The medics should help a lot in an effort to enhance sexuality after breast cancer. They should counsel the patient's partner and make them love their women's body just like before the illness. Breasts are major sexual organs to both women and men. One woman confessed that her breasts had been a playing a major role in her sex life until breast cancer was discovered.

The cancer was in her both breasts but she went through lumpectomy and radiation treatment. Lucky enough her breasts came out looking great. Despite this, her husband acted like they did not exist. She felt so much sexual rejection and would turn down sex all the time. Her husband's view of her sexuality after cancer had changed. A physician can do a lot to assure the man that cuddling, kissing and fondling the breasts will not in any way harm the breasts. A medic is also better placed to explain that the woman is not radioactive and that he cannot catch cancer. The woman's explanation might not be trusted but people tend to take doctor's word as the biblical truth. This will do a lot to enhance sexuality after breast cancer. The former love making habits will soon resume.

To correctly enhance your sexuality after breast cancer stop comparing yourself with others. Most people have wild imaginations about what happens in other people's bed rooms. Do not be fooled by the televisions, movies and magazines. All that is fiction. Research has revealed that people have much less sex than we imagine. The reported averages shows that people with age ranging from 50 to 60 do it about five times a month. Those with age ranging from 40-50 do it around six times a month while those ones between 30 and 40 age bracket has the highest number being seven times a month. People above 60 years still have sex but the frequency reduces with age.

Jane who is 78 years old says that she stopped being sexually active during breast cancer treatment but they resumed for the action at her own request. Most breast cancer survivors continue to enjoy their sex life even at old age. To enhance sexuality after breast cancer do not let sex myths about other patients block your own happiness. Remember exceptions are there in every special pattern. Talk to your doctor, dispel your fears and you will be able to replace myths with actual facts.

Breast cancer may sadly highlight the problems in your sexual relationship but you can still enjoy your sex life as you contemplate the missing link. To enhance sexuality after breast cancer might be hard but give it a serious thought. You will finally make it. Enrich your sex life with fantasy. Read romantic novels a lot as it has worked for many women. Meet your needs by making birthdays and anniversaries a big deal. This will bring back the happy mood which off course will enhance your sexuality in many ways.
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Francis K. Githinji Is An Online Dating Expert. His Latest Project Sexuality After Breast Cancer Shows How The Power Of Online Dating Can Be Harnessed Internationally and With Great Success, Or You Could Post Your Valued Comments On His Blog At Sexuality After Breast Cancer

How Dangerous Is Breast Cancer

2009-11-16T08:02:00.000-08:00

How dangerous is breast cancer? Well, breast cancer is really dangerous but there are now lots of treatments available. You’re free to choose between conventional treatments and alternative treatments. Through accurate diagnosis, the doctor can provide you with the proper treatment plan that can cure your cancer.

If you were diagnosed with breast cancer many years ago, it would have been a hopeless case. Thanks to the developments in the medical industry, the cancer treatments today are very effective and the survival rates are also high.

Most cancer patients are women but there are also men who develop the disease. In the US alone, more than 200,000 people are diagnosed breast cancer. Breast cancer is also the leading cause of deaths among women and it is also the highest so far as compared to other types of cancer. Women who are already in their menopause stage are prone to breast cancer; not only that, women taking HRTs and pills are also susceptible to the disease. Excessive alcohol intake and being overweight can also lead to cancer. Certain genes cause breast cancer and if one of these genes is present in your family, you’re at high risk.

When you have breast cancer, the tissues in your breast are already cancerous. It usually appears like a lump or tumor in the breast area. Not all lumps in the breast area are cancerous because some of them are just normal lumps but you need to be sure.

Some of the symptoms of breast cancer are swelling or lump in the breast, increased breast size, change in color or dimpling of the skin, and unusual nipple discharge. In order to cure breast cancer, early detection is vital. When the cancer has reached the advanced stage or Stage 4, it will be a bit difficult to treat.

There are different ways to detect breast cancer. Every year, you can undergo a medical exam conducted by a doctor. Women over 40 years can undergo mammogram or ultrasound. Doctors usually employ biopsy to determine if the lump or mass is cancerous. Some individuals also conduct BSE wherein they examine their breasts for any abnormality.

Some of the treatments available for treating breast cancer are surgery, chemotherapy, hormone treatment, and radiation therapy. If you find these treatments quite costly, you can opt for alternative treatments like natural medicines and homeopathy.

Since breast cancer is considered a dangerous disease, prevention is the key to stop its development. Some of the treatments can damage the body and so the patients often feel exhausted and stressed. For those who want to feel relaxed instead of tired, they can undergo a massage therapy or any other alternative treatment. Prevention is still better than cure and this applies to all kinds of health problem. If breast cancer runs in your genes and if you’re already aging, you need to be more aware if there are any changes in your breasts. Keep in mind that breast cancer does not discriminate.

So what are you waiting for? Have your breasts examined if you’re suspicious of any lump or mass in your breast. How dangerous is breast cancer? It can cause you your life so don’t take it lightly. Many people die of breast cancer and if you don’t want to end up like them, examine your breast area regularly.
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Charlene J. Nuble is a healthcare professional who loves writing about women's issues, parenting and other health related stuffs. Click on the link to learn more about How Dangerous is Breast Cancer...

Age And Physical Risk Factors In Breast Cancer

2009-10-31T20:30:00.000-07:00

Age is likely the most important overall factor associated with breast cancer risk. Breast cancer risk increases in the older post-menopausal population. For this reason, all breast cancer screening recommendations are based primarily on age. Obesity, however, may be the single most preventable risk factor associated with breast cancer. With the dramatic increase in obesity in the U.S., this may be the number one reason for a persistently high incidence in breast cancer. Other physical factors also play some roles in breast cancer risk. These include height, body shape, breast size, and mammographic density. These physical factors are summarized below.

Body Weight and Breast Cancer: A woman's body weight does affect her risk of breast cancer but the effect is different for premenopausal and postmenopausal breast cancer. Most studies have found that heavier women (weighing more than 175 pounds) have a lower risk of breast cancer before menopause and higher risk of breast cancer after menopause, compared to thinner women (weighing less than 130 pounds). Since 80% of breast cancers occur after menopause, the negative effects of obesity far outweigh the beneficial effects. The results are the same whether body weight is examined directly or if body mass index is used to adjust for the effects of height on body weight.

Body Shape and Breast Cancer: Several human studies have found that women who carry more of their body fat on their stomach (apple shaped) have higher rates of postmenopausal breast cancer compared to women with more of their body fat around their hips (pear shaped). This seems to be true regardless of women's body weight. The relationship of the location of fat on the body and premenopausal breast cancer risk has not been clearly determined

Height and Breast Cancer: A woman's height has been associated with breast cancer risk in many studies. Taller women (5' 9" or taller) have a small increase in risk of both premenopausal and postmenopausal breast cancer compared to shorter women (5' 3" or shorter). A person's height is determined by the interaction of genetics and nutrition. How height might affect breast cancer risk is unclear.

Breast Size and Breast Cancer: There is a popular belief that small breasts are at lower risk of breast cancer. This theory has been used to explain why women with breast implants have a smaller risk of breast cancer. However, most studies have found no association between breast size and breast cancer risk. One study, however, did find an increase in the risk of breast cancer among lean women with larger breasts. In this study, more than 4,000 women were grouped according to their bra size before childbirth. Women who were lean (chest size less than 34 inches) and had larger breasts (size B, C or larger cups) were at higher risk of post menopausal breast cancer relative to women of the same chest size with an A or smaller cup size. Women with other chest sizes had no association between breast cup size and breast cancer risk. More studies are needed to confirm these results

Mammographic density: Numerous epidemiological studies have shown that breast density as measured on mammograms is a significant risk factor for breast cancer. The risk of breast cancer associated with the highest category of density has been estimated to be much greater than in the lowest density category. Mammographic density appears to be predictive for developing invasive cancer after DCIS (ductal carcinoma in situ). Increasing density is associated with increasing breast cancer risk in both premenopausal and postmenopausal women, with the effect persisting for ten years after mammography. Mammographic density has also been shown to be a risk factor for breast cancer in women with a family history of the disease. Mammographic density is probably important even in patients who are BRCA gene positive. In fact, mammographic density may actually have a substantial heritable component.

Dr. Mai Brooks is a surgical oncologist/general surgeon, with expertise in early detection and prevention of cancer. More at www.drbrooksmd.com, thecancerexperience.wordpress.com and progressreportoncancer.wordpress.com.

The Treatment of Triple Negative Breast Cancer

2009-10-17T19:13:00.000-07:00

Triple-negative breast cancer is a subtype of breast cancer that is clinically negative for expression of estrogen and progesterone receptors (ER/PR) and HER2 protein. It is typified by its unique molecular profile, aggressive behavior, distinct patterns of metastasis, and lack of targeted therapies.

It is known that breast cancer is not one appearance of cancer, but lots of various "subtypes" of cancer. Its subtypes are in general diagnosed based upon the presence, or lack of, three "receptors" known to fuel most breast cancers: estrogen receptors, progesterone receptors and human epidermal development factor receptor 2 (HER2). The most successful treatments for breast cancer target these receptors.

Unluckily, none of these receptors are discovered in women with triple negative breast cancer. In other words, its diagnosis indicates that the offending tumor is estrogen receptor-negative, progesterone receptor-negative and HER2-negative, therefore giving rise to the name "triple negative breast cancer."

It is simply in the last few years that professionals investigating breast cancer have concluded that it is not one disease, but lots of various forms of cancer all creating in the breast. Depending on its stage of diagnosis, triple negative breast cancer could be very aggressive and more probable to return and metastasize than other subtypes of it.
After surgery to get rid of the cancer, chemotherapy is the best option of treatment to undertake and stop triple negative breast cancer returning.

Some usually employed breast cancer treatments like hormone therapy or Herceptin don’t run for triple negative breast cancer. These treatments require attaching to certain receptors. Its cells do not have the right receptors.

The major chemotherapy treatment for triple negative breast cancer is typically a mixture of chemotherapy drugs. The mixture should consist of a type of chemotherapy drug called an anthracycline (doxorubicin or epirubicin).

How to Treat Inflammatory Breast Cancer

2009-10-11T19:10:00.000-07:00

Inflammatory breast cancer is a principally aggressive kind of breast cancer that could happen in women of any age (and, even though very uncommonly, in men). It is unique since it frequently does not present with a lump and hence frequently is not detected by mammography or ultrasound.

Inflammatory breast cancer is an uncommon but aggressive type of breast cancer that grows speedily, making the affected breast red, swollen and tender. It's a locally advanced cancer, signifying it has extended from its point of origin to close by tissue and perhaps to nearby lymph nodes.

The early signs of more- usual appearances of breast cancer — a breast lump or suspicious part on a routine, screening mammogram — are frequently absent in inflammatory breast cancer. In its place, the breast might come out normal until tumor cells invade and block lymphatic vessels in the overlying skin. Fluid backs up, and the breast swells and becomes discolored.

Inflammatory Breast Cancer (IBC) leads to alterations in the nipple and the neighboring parts. Invasion of the local lymphatic ducts impairs drainage and leads to edematous swelling of the breast. Since the skin of the breast is tethered by the suspensory ligament of Cooper, the buildup of fluid causes the skin of the breast to assume a dimpled form reminiscent of the peel of an orange. Other symptoms contain rapid increase in breast size, redness, persistent itching, skin hot to the touch. IBC frequently at first looks like mastitis, and is sometimes misdiagnosed as an insect bite.

We have been taught and are reminded often by public service announcements and by the medical community that when a woman finds out a lump on her breast she ought to go to the doctor right away. Inflammatory breast cancer typically develops in nests or sheets, more willingly than as a confined, solid tumor and thus could be diffuse all through the breast without palpable mass.

A number of women who suffer inflammatory breast cancer might stay undiagnosed for long periods, even while seeing their doctor to study the cause of her symptoms. The symptoms are close to mastitis, a breast infection and a number of doctors, not recognizing IBC, will set down antibiotics. If a reaction to antibiotics is not obvious subsequent to a week, a biopsy ought to be done or a referral to a breast specialist is necessary.

Inflammatory breast cancer could extend more rapidly than other kinds of breast cancer; consequently treatment will frequently be begun immediately. You are probable to be presented a mixture of various treatments that treat both the body as an entirety (systemic treatment), and the breast area separately (local treatment).

Treatment frequently consists of a mixture of chemotherapy, radiotherapy, hormonal therapy and also surgery. For the majority types of breast cancer, surgery is typically the first treatment. However, with inflammatory breast cancer, chemotherapy is typically given first. Giving chemotherapy before surgery is known as neo-adjuvant treatment.

Ductal Carcinoma in Situ as a Type of Breast Cancer

2009-09-29T19:07:00.000-07:00

Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is the earliest likely clinical diagnosis of breast cancer and is often diagnosed with screening mammography that has detected small parts of calcification in the breast. Patients hardly ever suppose that they have breast cancer. If DCIS is untreated, about 30 percent of patients will grow invasive breast cancer an average of 10 years from the first diagnosis.

Ductal carcinoma in situ (or DCIS) refers to the most widespread kind of noninvasive breast cancer in women. In situ, or "in place," portrays a cancer that has not left of the area of the body where it initially developed. With DCIS, the cancer cells are restricted to milk ducts in the breast and have not extended into the fatty breast tissue or to any other area of the body.

Ductal carcinoma in situ is frequently earliest identified by a mammogram (an x-ray examination of soft breast tissues employed to detect lumps, cysts, tumors, and other abnormalities). It might appear on a mammogram as tiny specks of calcium, in general too small to make out by physical examination.

Treatment alternatives for Patients with Ductal carcinoma in situ are:
1. Breast-conserving surgery and radiation therapy with or with no tamoxifen.
2. Total mastectomy with or with no tamoxifen.
3. Breast-conserving surgery with no radiation therapy.

Your doctor might illustrate Ductal carcinoma in situ as a so early shape of breast cancer. A number of doctors describe it a pre-cancerous condition since it might go on to grow into an invasive cancer if it is not cured. DCIS is becoming more usual. This is since it is being picked up on mammograms when women are screened for breast cancer.

Keep in mind - it is confusing, but invasive ductal breast cancer and DCIS is not the identical thing. In invasive ductal breast cancer, the cells have broken out of the ducts and thus there is a possibility they could extend into close by lymph nodes or other areas of the body.

Best Tool for Detecting Breast Cancer

2009-09-23T19:03:00.000-07:00

Women could take an active part in the early detection of breast cancer by having repeatedly scheduled screening mammograms and clinical breast examinations.

A screening mammogram is the best tool accessible for discovering breast cancer early, before symptoms come into view. A mammogram is a particular type of x-ray. They are utilized to search for breast alterations in women who have no signs of breast cancer.

Women ought to start examining their breasts every month beginning around age 20. Doctors are advised to talk to their patients concerning the restrictions of Breast Self Examination (BSE). Examination has revealed BSE plays a small role in detecting breast cancer compared with mammograms, clinical exams and self-awareness.

The usage of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) for detecting breast cancer is coming out of the research stage and into clinical practice and is obtainable in chosen centers. MRI employs radiowaves and magnets, an unusual breast coil and a computer to scan the patient to create its images. Its effectiveness in detecting tissues that are abnormally active is being examined. MRI could be useful in settling on the extent of breast abnormalities, particularly for surgical resection. It is utilized along with mammography for women with dense breasts as well and those who are at high risk. It could assist inform between a benign and cancerous lump.

Mammography is an x-ray exam of the breast. There are two kinds of mammography. Screening mammography detects breast disease in a woman who does not have any symptoms. Diagnostic mammography is employed to assist make a diagnosis in a woman who has breast grievances like a lump or an abnormality that was found as long as a screening mammogram.

The aptitude of x-ray mammography, a standard screening tool for breast cancer, to detect lesions is decreased when done on dense breasts, where tissue is less fatty and more glandular. Breast MRI is efficient at detecting cancer in dense breasts and is gradually more being utilized to screen women at high risk for breast cancer. However, MRI has a high occurrence of false-positive test results that signify cancer is present when it is not. Examiners consider these false positives are due partly to hormonal alterations that happen as long as a woman's menstrual cycle.

Thermography, also named thermal imaging, has been learned for some decades. But, there is no proof that breast thermography is an effectual screening tool for early detection of breast cancer, in accordance with the American Cancer Society.

This technology is most effectual in detecting tumors that are near to the skin surface but not tumors deeper in the breast. In addition, breast thermography is not responsive enough to detect small cancers.

Breast thermography is not regularly utilized for breast cancer detection and ought to not be employed instead of mammograms. Scientists go on to examine the effectiveness of thermography in detecting breast cancer.

Breast Cancer Types: Ductal and Lobular Carcinoma

2009-09-17T19:00:00.000-07:00

Breast diseases like breast cancer mostly have an effect on women. This is since male breasts are more undeveloped than female breasts, making them more resilient to cancer. Breast cancer is at times categorized into some 'types'.

Types of breast cancers
There are several types of breast cancer, although a number of them are so uncommon. Sometimes a breast tumor could be a combination of these types or a mix of invasive and in situ cancer.
 Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS): This is the most widespread type of non-invasive breast cancer. DCIS represents that the cancer is simply in the ducts. It has not extended by means of the walls of the ducts into the tissue of the breast. Almost all women with cancer at this stage could be treated. Frequently the best method to discover DCIS early is with a mammogram.
 Lobular carcinoma in situ (LCIS): This state starts in the milk-making glands but does not go through the wall of the lobules. Even though not a true cancer, having LCIS raises a woman's risk of getting cancer later on. Therefore, it's significant that women with LCIS ensure they have habitual mammograms.
 Invasive (infiltrating) ductal carcinoma (IDC): This is the most widespread breast cancer. It begins in a milk passage or duct, breaks through the wall of the duct, and attacks the tissue of the breast. From there it might be able to extend to other areas of the body. It accounts for roughly 8 out of 10 invasive breast cancers.
 Invasive (infiltrating) lobular carcinoma (ILC): This cancer begins in the milk glands or lobules. It could extend to other areas of the body. Approximately 1 out of 10 invasive breast cancers are of this type.

The most usual types of breast cancer start either in your breast's milk ducts (ductal carcinoma) or in the milk-producing glands (lobular carcinoma). The point of cause is settled on by the growth of the cancer cells under a microscope.

Unusual types of breast cancer consist of inflammatory breast cancer, phyllodes tumor, angiosarcoma, osteosarcoma, metaplastic breast cancer, adenoid cystic carcinoma and Paget's disease of the breast. There are uncommon subtypes of invasive ductal carcinoma — tubular, mucinous, medullary and papillary as well.

The Types and Options of Breast Cancer Surgery

2009-09-11T18:58:00.000-07:00

Surgery is typically the first line of assault against breast cancer. This part makes clear the various types of breast cancer surgery.

As a woman with early-stage breast cancer (DCIS or Stage I, IIA, IIB, or IIIA breast cancer) you might be able to decide which type of breast surgery to have. Frequently, your selection is between breast-sparing surgery (surgery that removes the cancer and leaves most of the breast) and a mastectomy (surgery that gets rid of the whole breast). Examination demonstrates that women with early-stage breast cancer who have breast-sparing surgery together with radiation therapy live as long as those who have a mastectomy. The majority women with breast cancer will lead long, healthy lives subsequent to treatment.

Treatment for breast cancer typically starts some weeks following diagnosis. In these weeks, you ought to meet with a surgeon, learn the details regarding your surgery options, and consider what is significant to you. Afterward decide which type of surgery to have.

Women with breast cancer have lots of treatment choices. These consist of surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and biological therapy. These alternatives are explained below. But lots of women accept more than one kind of treatment.

Cancer treatment is either local therapy or systemic therapy:
 Local therapy: Surgery and radiation therapy are local treatments. They take out or obliterate cancer in the breast. When breast cancer has extended to other areas of the body, local therapy might be utilized to manage the disease in those certain parts.
 Systemic therapy: Chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and biological therapy are systemic treatments. They come into the bloodstream and obliterate or manage cancer all through the body. A number of women with breast cancer have systemic therapy to shrink the tumor prior to surgery or radiation. Others have systemic therapy following surgery and/or radiation to put off the cancer from returning. Systemic treatments are employed for cancer that has extended too.

Judgments in relation to surgery rely on several factors. You and your doctor will settle on the type of surgery that’s most suitable for you based on the stage of the cancer, the "personality" of the cancer, and what is satisfactory to you in terms of your long-term peace of mind.

However, there are some types of breast surgery. Your physician could give details the benefits and risks of each type, besides to answering some questions or concerns you might have before surgery.

The Functions of Breast Cancer Staging

2009-09-05T18:52:00.000-07:00

Staging is the practice physicians employ to measure the size and location of a patient’s cancer. Detecting the cancer stage is one of the most significant factors in choosing treatment alternatives. Some tests might be done to assist stage breast cancer including clinical breast examinations, biopsy, and particular imaging tests like a chest x-ray, mammogram, bone scan, CT scan, and MRI scan. Blood tests are employed to assess a woman's overall health and identify whether the cancer has extended to particular areas frequently follow imaging tests.

Breast cancer staging is convoluted, and the classification system at times alters as doctors find out more in relation to breast cancer. All the numbers and letters could be perplexing, but these facts assist you and your doctors understand as much as possible regarding your cancer.

Even though breast cancer staging is a complicated classification system that could alter as physicians learn more about the disease, it is useful for patients to know what factors physicians deem when identifying a diagnosis.

The most usual staging method, named the TNM staging system, consists of three main elements:
 Tumor (T). How big is the tumor, and has it extend to the skin or chest wall muscle? Tumor size is one of the most significant predictors of how a cancer will work.
 Node (N). Have cancer cells extended to neighboring lymph nodes? Doctors calculate how many lymph nodes beneath the arm (axillary lymph nodes) test positive for cancer, since their status powerfully relates to prognosis. Breast cancers might be illustrated as "node positive" or "node negative."
 Metastasis (M). Has the cancer extended to other, distant parts of the body?

The intention of the staging system is to assist manage the different factors and a number of the personality features of the cancer into categories, so as to:
 best understand your prognosis (the most probable result of the disease)
 direct treatment judgments (in common with other areas of your pathology report), because clinical studies of breast cancer treatments that you and your doctor will take into account are in part organized by the staging system
 give a general method to explain the extent of breast cancer for doctors and nurses all over the world, in order that outcomes of your treatment could be evaluated and comprehended.

The 0 to 4 staging system, based on data from many people with breast cancer, approximates your possibility of surviving for as a minimum five years following your diagnosis. The numbers articulate likelihood, not certainty. With advances in detection and treatment, people with breast cancer are living longer than ever before.

Chemotherapy Drugs for Breast Cancer

2009-08-29T18:51:00.000-07:00

Chemotherapy denotes treatment with drugs. But in cancer treatment it indicates 'cytotoxic chemotherapy' - drugs that eradicate cancer cells. Chemotherapy employs these cytotoxic drugs to obliterate cancer cells. The drugs act by disturbing the development of cancer cells. As they flow in the blood, they could get to them wherever they are in your body.

There are fairly a small number of chemotherapy drugs usually utilized for breast cancer. Therefore we couldn’t reveal what your doctor will suggest. Typically you would have a mixture of roughly 3 chemotherapy drugs together. But in a number of circumstances, your specialist might recommend one on its own. The drugs are Cyclophosphamide, Epirubicin, 5-Fluorouracil or 5 FU, Methotrexate, Mitomycin, Mitozantrone (mitoxantrone), Doxorubicin (Adriamycin), and Docetaxel (Taxotere).

The doctor who settles on which drugs and in what dosage is recognized as a medical oncologist. Chemotherapy could be utilized for three main objectives:
1. Adjuvant therapy: The objective is to put off or prevent cancer from returning after the first surgery and radiation. Even when the cancer seems to be restricted to the breast and lymph glands beneath the arm, there is a possibility that cells might have already extended to other parts that could not be seen. Chemotherapy is given to undertake and eradicate these cells.
2. Neo-adjuvant therapy. At times the cancer in the breast is very big that shrinking it initial with chemotherapy might make it easier to do surgery.
3. To treat metastatic disease. If the cancer reveals in areas of the body other than the breast and lymph glands beneath the arm, it is named metastatic disease. Chemotherapy could be one of the major methods to eradicate cancer cells that have extended to other areas of the body, and assist woman live longer with good quality of life. When to begin chemotherapy, what drugs to employ, and what side effects to anticipate varies from woman to woman. Women ought to talk about this with their doctors.

Doctors provide chemotherapy in cycles, with every period of treatment followed by a rest period. The chemotherapy starts on the first day of each cycle, and afterward the body is given time to recover from the consequences of chemotherapy. The chemotherapy drugs are subsequently repeated to begin the next cycle. The time between giving them is normally 2 or 3 weeks and be various according the specific chemotherapy drug or combination of drugs. A number of drugs are given more frequently. These cycles in general last for a total time of 3 to 6 months when given as adjuvant therapy, depending on the drugs employed. Treatment might be longer for advanced breast cancer.

Breast Cancer and Bone Metastasis

2009-08-22T18:49:00.000-07:00

Cancer that has grown in one part of the body could extend outside that place and attack other areas of the body. This process is named metastasis. The bone is a usual place of metastasis for some different cancers. They consist of lung, breast, prostate, kidney, and thyroid cancers, and multiple myeloma amongst others.
When cancer has extended to a new site, it is still named after the area of the body where it begins. For instance, if prostate cancer extends to the bones, it is still called prostate cancer, and if breast cancer extends to the lungs it is still breast cancer. A person with breast cancer that has extended to the bones is said to have breast cancer with bone metastases. (If you are talking about over one metastasis, they are named metastases.)

Bone comes about to be one of the most common parts to which breast cancer metastasizes, the others being liver, lung, and brain.

Breast cancer is the most widespread type of malignant disease among women; one in every ten women in the United States will experience from this disease. It stands for the second principal cause of death by a malignant disease in women following lung cancer. Bone metastases in breast cancer are common. The risk of developing bone metastasis augments with the stage of the disease at presentation. Autopsy studies have showed a high amount of breast cancer patients with bone metastasis.

Breast cancer usually extends to bone at a frequency of about 70% in patients having distant metastasis. But, the mechanism of bone metastasis is not well comprehended. One probability is that the environment in bone marrow, exceedingly rich in growth factors and cytokines, is appropriate for the proliferation of breast cancer cells. A more probable elucidation is that definite mechanisms of adhesion happen between the bone endothelial (blood vessel lining) cells and breast cancer cells that favors extend to this location.

Bone metastases represent 25% of all metastatic breast cancers. There are two major kinds of bone cancer: osteolytic and osteoblastic. Osteolytic cancer eats away at your bones, causing holes to form. This leaves bones open to breaks and fractures. Osteoblastic cancer augments the density of your bones, but makes them prone to fracture as well. Both forms of bone cancer lead to pain.

Is Ultrasound useful for Breast Cancer?

2009-08-17T18:48:00.000-07:00

Breast ultrasound, recognized as sonography or ultrasonography too, is often employed to assess breast abnormalities that are discovered with screening or diagnostic mammography or during a physician done clinical breast exam. Ultrasound lets important freedom in getting images of the breast from roughly any orientation.

Ultrasound is outstanding at imaging cysts: round, fluid-filled, pockets in the breast. In addition, ultrasound could frequently rapidly settle on if a suspicious area is actually a cyst or an increased density of solid tissue which might need a biopsy to settle on if it is malignant.

The main usage of breast ultrasound nowadays is to assist diagnose breast abnormalities identified by a physician as long as a physical exam (like a lump or bloody or spontaneous clear nipple discharge) and to typify potential abnormalities seen on mammography.

Ultrasound imaging could assist to settle on if an abnormality is solid (which might be a non-cancerous lump of tissue or a cancerous tumor) or fluid-filled (like a benign cyst) or both cystic and solid. Ultrasound could assist to demonstrate added features of the abnormal region as well.

Lots of studies have proved that ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) could assist supplement mammography by identifying small breast cancers that might not be observable with mammography. This is typically simply regarded when the breast tissue is dense. It is expected that by identifying like cancers, these other screening tests may assist to additional prevent deaths because of breast cancer beyond what is attained with mammography alone. When ultrasound is employed for screening, lots of abnormalities are observed which might need biopsy but are not cancer and this restrict s its cost effectiveness.

Nowadays, ultrasound is being examined for usage as a screening tool for women who have dense breasts; have silicone breast inserts and scanty tissue could be included on the mammogram; are pregnant or ought to not to be exposed to x-rays; and are at high risk for breast cancer based on family history, individual history of breast cancer, or prior atypical biopsy outcome.

Although breast ultrasound has outstanding contrast resolution, it lacks the feature of conventional mammography, and so, ultrasound is not supported by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a screening tool for breast cancer. Relatively, ultrasound is employed to examine an abnormality identified by mammography or as long as a physician done breast exam. Presently, simply mammography is FDA approved to try to find breast cancer in asymptomatic women.

Breast Cancer Treatment Options

2009-08-12T18:47:00.000-07:00

Nowadays, women with advanced breast cancer have numerous treatment options obtainable to them. In general, these treatments are intended at lengthening life and improving or maintaining quality of life whenever achievable. A medical team could assist make the suitable choices concerning breast cancer treatment and follow-up care, rooted in the medical state and the lifestyle women would like to lead. You require settling on what treatment options will run for you by weighing the risks and advantages with your physician. Five kinds of customary treatment are employed:

Surgery
The majority patients with breast cancer have surgery to get rid of the cancer from the breast. A number of of the lymph nodes under the arm are typically taken out and looked at under a microscope to observe if they have cancer cells.

Radiation therapy
Radiation therapy is a cancer treatment that employs high-energy x-rays or other kinds of radiation to eradicate cancer cells or keep them from developing. There are two kinds of radiation therapy. External radiation therapy applies a machine outside the body to transmit radiation toward the cancer. Internal radiation therapy employs a radioactive substance sealed in needles, seeds, wires, or catheters that are put straight into or near the cancer. The way the radiation therapy is given depends on the kind and stage of the cancer being treated.

Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is a cancer treatment that employs drugs to discontinue the enlargement of cancer cells, either by eradicating the cells or by ending them from dividing. When chemotherapy is taken by mouth or injected into a vein or muscle, the drugs enter the bloodstream and could attain cancer cells all through the body (systemic chemotherapy). When chemotherapy is put in a straight line into the spinal column, an organ, or a body cavity like the abdomen, the drugs principally have an effect on cancer cells in those areas (regional chemotherapy). The way the chemotherapy is given depends on the type and stage of the cancer being treated.

Hormone therapy
Hormone therapy is a cancer treatment that gets rid of hormones or blockades their action and discontinues cancer cells from growing. Hormones are substances generated by glands in the body and circulated in the bloodstream. A number of hormones could lead to particular cancers to grow up. If tests demonstrate that the cancer cells have puts where hormones could attach, drugs, surgery, or radiation therapy are utilized to decrease the production of hormones or blockade them from working. The hormone estrogen, which makes a number of breast cancers grow up, is made primarily by the ovaries.

Targeted (Biologic) Therapies
These therapies are intended to disrupt those processes that contribute to the continued enlargement of cancer cells. Such therapies consist of: Tykerb, Herceptin, Avastin, and Iressa.

Pregnancy and Breast Cancer Risk

2009-08-07T18:44:00.000-07:00

Breast cancer is the most usual cancer in pregnant women and tends to have an effect on women in their mid-30s. Though simply roughly one in every 3,000 pregnant women get breast cancer, the disease could be devastating to both the mother and her child -- thus it is necessary that pregnant women and their doctors maintain to perform regular breast exams and carefully examine any suspicious lumps and symptoms.

When a pregnant woman grows breast cancer, it is frequently detected at a later stage than it is in women who are not pregnant. This is since as long as pregnancy, hormone alterations lead to a woman's breasts to broaden and become more tender and lumpy. This could make it harder for you or your doctor to discover a lump in your breasts. Mammograms are harder as well for doctors to read as long as pregnancy since the breasts becomes denser. The early alterations caused by cancer can be mistaken for or hidden by the normal alterations that occur with pregnancy as well.

Even as long as pregnancy, early detection is a significant element of breast health. Converse to your doctor or nurse concerning breast exams and the best time for your next mammogram -- particularly if you are age 40 or older, or if you or your doctor observes a alteration in how your breasts appearance or feel. As always, if you discover any lump or alteration in your breasts, say to your doctor or nurse immediately.

Pregnancy-Related Factors that Increase Breast Cancer Risk

A number of factors connected with pregnancy are recognized to add to a woman’s possibilities of developing breast cancer:
 After a woman gives birth, her risk of breast cancer is momentarily increased. This momentary upsurge lasts simply for a few years.
 A woman who in pregnancy took DES (diethylstilbesterol), a synthetic form of estrogen that was utilized between the early 1940s and 1971, has a faintly higher risk of developing breast cancer.

A number of treatments for breast cancer, like certain chemo drugs, might have an effect on a woman’s fertility. Still, lots of women are able to become pregnant after treatment. Women concerned in relation to their fertility ought to converse to their doctors regarding this prior to beginning breast cancer treatment.

All women who have suffered breast cancer and are considering about having children ought to converse with their doctors concerning their risk of cancer coming back. In numerous cases, counseling could assist women sort through the options that be associated with surviving breast cancer and planning a pregnancy.