Breast Cancer : Things One Needs to know

What is breast cancer?

Cancer that forms in tissues of the breast,

It occurs in both men and women, although male breast cancer is very very rare.

Is it common ?

Breast cancer is the most common of all cancers in women in India .

Breast cancer occurs more frequently in older women but there is possibility in younger age too .

Risk Factors ?

· Aging: the risk of breast cancer increases as women get older

· Genes: mutations of certain genes that are inherited from the mother or the father increase the risk of breast cancer, but it is less than10 percent of all breast cancer cases.

· Family history of breast cancer: having a first-degree relative (mother, sister, daughter, brother and father) who had breast cancer increases the risk of developing breast cancer.

· Personal history of breast cancer: having had breast cancer increases the risk of having breast cancer in a different part of the same breast or in the other breast.

· Lifetime exposure to estrogen and progesterone: o Women whose menstrual periods began before the age of 12 and ended after the age of 55 are at an increased risk of developing breast cancer. Women who have not had children or had their first child after the age of 30 are at an increased risk of developing breast cancer.

· History of certain benign breast conditions: the risk of breast cancer occurring is particularly high for women with two conditions called atypical lobular hyperplasia and atypical ductal hyperplasia.

·Use of hormone replacement therapy after the menopause increases the risk of developing breast cancer.

· Radiotherapy of the breast during childhood or adolescence: having received radiotherapy in childhood or adolescence increases the risk of developing breast cancer in adulthood.

· Overweight and obesity: being overweight or obese increases the risk of developing breast cancer, especially after menopause.

· Alcohol consumption and smoking: the risk of breast cancer increases with alcohol consumption and with smoking.

These are only risk factors i.e. everyone with these risk factor wont get breast cancer , neither absence of any excludes possibility of risk factors .

Most of these risk factors are non modifiable , but at least lifestyle modification can take care of modifiable risk factors .

How it is Diagnosed ?

1. Clinical Suspicion

• palpable mass in the breast

• skin changes of the breast

• any fluid leaking from the nipple

• positive screening mammography

1. Confirmation of Diagnosis

1. Clinical examination. The physical examination of the breasts and neighbouring lymph nodes includes inspection and palpation.

2. Radiological examination. This includes conducting a mammography, and an ultrasound examination of the breasts and neighboring lymph nodes. Magnetic resonance imaging* (MRI) of the breast may be required in certain cases

3. Histopathological examination. This is the laboratory examination of the breast and tumor tissue after removing a sample from the tumor. This is called a biopsy.

Treatment

Tretment for breast cancer comprises of Surgery , Chemotherapy , Radiotherapy , Hormonal therapy , targeted therapies .

Selection of required therappy depend upon stage at presentation , intent of treatment , patient fitness and choice of treatment and type of cancer on histopathology .