Early Symptoms Of Breast Cancer: How To Detect Breast Cancer At Its Early Stage

Posted on May 22, 2010 by admin

Breast cancer is one of the top ten cancers plaguing women all over the world. The risk of getting this disease is higher as one becomes older. Unlike other cancers, however, detecting early symptoms of breast cancer is easier.

It?s always important to arm yourself with the proper knowledge. To help protect yourself, be aware if you?re experiencing any of these early symptoms of breast cancer:

1) Tenderness in the Breast

While most women experience tenderness in the breast during their monthly cycle, it?s not natural at all during the rest of her regular days. If you find yourself having to deal with this, perhaps it?s time for a mammogram.

2) Unusual Lump in the Breast

One of the most common early symptoms of breast cancer is the presence of an unusual lump in the breast. Women have been taught to give themselves a self-breast exam, to feel for any bump inside the breast or even the armpit. This lump might be benign or malignant. However, it?s not a good idea to take chances. Have it checked immediately.

3) Discharge from the Nipple

During the first few stages of breast cancer, you might notice a strange discharge from your nipple. This could either be bloody, yellow or greenish. Whatever color it might be, it is imperative that you go see a doctor at once. Breast cancer can progress very quickly; so the earlier you see a doctor, the better.

4) Swelling of the Breast

Similar to tenderness of the breast, this sort of thing might naturally occur in women during the days of her cycle. This is another reason why doctors encourage the practice of a monthly self-breast exam. This way, you will be able to see just how much of a difference there is in your breast size, and get a check-up immediately if you notice any of the early symptoms of breast cancer.

5) Change in Texture

Doing monthly self exams also help you determine any change in your breast?s texture. Be on the lookout for skin that has redness or skin that is dimpling. Be very sensitive to retraction of the nipple or the occurrence of a peau ?d orange. A peau ?d orange refers to a breast that resembles the skin of an orange.

When there is something wrong, your body will tell you in the form of symptoms. So don?t take these early symptoms of breast cancer for granted. Remember, your health is at stake here. Prevention is better than cure.

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Breast Cancer Symptoms

Posted on May 21, 2010 by admin

Breast cancer symptoms can be experienced by men as well as women but breast cancer is very rare in men compared to women. More than 1 in 10 women are likely to suffer from breast cancer symptoms, and be diagnosed with breast cancer, in a lifetime. Breast cancer symptoms can be detected when a lump, tumor, or cyst grows large enough to either be felt or seen on a mammogram. Sometimes a tumor isn?t found for many years. Breast cancer symptoms don?t often manifest themselves until the cancer is already in its later stages of growth, and may have already metastasized to other more vital areas of the body. That is why it is so important for women to regularly get checked.

Breast cancer symptoms are often subtle, and self discovery can be elusive. Due to the high incidence of breast cancer among older women, screening is now recommended in many countries.

Lumps or masses in the breast are not unusual, and most of them are not cancerous. Some breast masses can be felt during a breast exam.

Lump may form in the breast, chest or under the arm if the cancer is in the breast or near the chest wall. You will also notice a change in the size, shape and skin of the breast.

Earlier the diagnosis of breast cancer always involved the removal of the breast and the surrounding skin, muscles underneath the breast and the lymph nodes underneath the arm. Today?s method of diagnosis is well advanced without the above mentioned procedure radical mastectomy.

Among young women, a lump that moves may be a sign of fibrocystic breast disease. But simply asking questions is not enough; a combination of tests is used to make a final diagnosis.

Generally, breast cancer is a much more aggressive disease in younger women. Generally a lump that is cancerous will not be tender to the touch, it will be hard, non-movable, and not change rapidly in size (within several days or weeks). If a lump is tender, it could be a cyst or a swollen lymph node. Genetic counseling and genetic testing should be considered for families who may carry a heritidary form of cancer.

Inflammatory breast cancer is an uncommon type of breast cancer, which includes the breast being warm, red, and swollen.The inflammation occurs because the cancer cells block the lymphatic vessels in the skin of the breast . It doesn?t always involve a lump.

Breast cancer is a common disease. Each year, approximately 200,000 women in the United States are diagnosed with breast cancer, and one in nine American women will develop breast cancer in her lifetime. Breast cancer occurs much more commonly in women and fewer than 1 in 100 of breast cancers occur in men. In the UK, approximately 250 men are diagnosed with breast cancer each year. Breast cancer starts in the cells of the breast. The breast tissue covers an area larger than just the breast.

Women with one of these defects have up to an 80% chance of getting breast cancer sometime during their life. Women who attend Infinite Boundaries retreats are in all stages of breast cancer. Some are newly diagnosed while others may have been treated for breast cancer years ago. Women who drink alcohol have a modestly increased risk. The more you drink, the greater your risk

Women had limited knowledge of their relative risk of developing breast cancer, of associated risk factors and of the diversity of potential breast cancer-related symptoms. Older women were particularly poor at identifying symptoms of breast cancer, risk factors associated with breast cancer and their personal risk of developing the disease. Women, sometimes, have lumps in their breasts which have been there for a lifetime. They?re usually harmless fibroids, and never conclusively mean you?ve developed breast cancer. Women are very conscious about their breast care. Beautiful and healthy breast are one of the most cherished dream of women.

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Stages of Breast Cancers

Posted on May 20, 2010 by admin

When dealing with breast cancer, you need to look at the different stages so you can be better prepared to face it head on.

Breast cancer often occurs in stages. Some cancers spread slowly while others spread quickly.? There are cancers that are predictable in growth and there are those that spread unpredictably. The cancers that are unpredictable are created by the use of estrogen in the body.

The stage itself will depend mainly on the size of the tumor and if the cancer has spread or not.

Stage 0

Stage 0 refers to noninvasive carcinoma or carcinoma in situ. With this stage the cells are abnormal in the lining of the lobule but are not cancerous as yet.??

Stage 1 and 2

In stage 1, the tumor has become cancerous and has grown to an inch in diameter, but has not spread beyond the breast. With stage 2, one of three things has happened: 1) The cancerous tumor grows to less than one inch across and has spread to the lymph nodes under the arm, 2) The cancerous tumor has grown to be about one and two inches, but has not reached the lymph nodes as yet, but is leaning in that direction, 3) The cancerous tumor is larger than 2 inches in diameter and has not moved.

Stage 3

In stage 3, the cancerous tumor has grown to more than two inches apart, and has reached and penetrated the lymph nodes of the underarms. In some cases this type of cancer has been known to spread to the lymph nodes near the breastbone, or other tissue near the breast.

Stage 4

In stage 4, this is metastatic cancer. The cancer has spread beyond the breast and lymph nodes to other parts of the body.

Despite all misconceptions, breast cancer is dangerous but it can be cured if caught in time.?http://bit.ly/nomorebreastcancer

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Do You Know the Different Stages of Breast Cancer?

Posted on May 19, 2010 by admin

The stage of the cancer basically depends upon the size of the tumor. It is very necessary to divide the problem into various stages as to understand properly about the outcome of the disease, to draw any result about the cancer and their possible treatment.

There are different stages of cancer.

1. Stage 0 – This stage is related with DCIS and LCIS and is used to describe non-invasive breast cancers. In stage 0 there is no evidence of non cancerous abnormal cell or cancerous cells. There are no other abnormal cells which will break out of the part of the breast or invading neighboring normal tissue.

2. Stage I is related with the invasive breast cancer in which there is no involvement of lymph nodes and the measurement of the tumor may be up to 2 centimeters.

3. Stage II is divided into two subcategories known as IIA and IIB.

4. Stage IIA is related with invasive breast cancer in which there is no tumor in the breast but in the axillary lymph nodes cancer cells are found and the measurement of tumor is 2 centimeters or it may be less and it may spread to the axillary lymph nodes. It is also possible that the tumor may be larger than 2 centimeters but it is not larger than 5 centimeters and it is also not spread to the axillary lymph nodes.

5. In stage II B the tumor is of the size of 2 centimeters but it is not larger than the size of 5 centimeter and it has also spread to the axillary lymph nodes or it is also possible that the tumor is 5 centimeters but it has not spread to the axillary lymph nodes.

6. Stage III is divided into subcategories which are known as IIIA, IIIB and IIIC.

7. In stage IIIA usually there is no tumor. Cancer is found in the lymph nodes or spread to the lymph nodes near the breast bone. The tumor may be 5 centimeters or smaller or it may be larger than 5 centimeters which are spread to axillary lymph nodes and are clumped together or sticking to other structures. It describes invasive breast cancer.

8. Stage IIIB considers inflammatory breast cancer.

9. In this stage the tumor spread to chest wall or the skin of the breast, it has spread above or below the collar bone and to lymph nodes near the breastbone

10. In stage IV it affects other organs of the body also like lungs, bone, liver or brain.

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Types Of Breast Cancer

Posted on May 18, 2010 by admin

Perhaps if you?re already experiencing some of the symptoms of breast cancer, you?re more concerned in determining the type of cancer you have. So, what are the different types of breast cancer?

About 5-10% of breast cancer incidents are due to hereditary factors. Individuals with genetic defects in the BRCA1 (breast bane gene1) and BRCA2 (breast sarcoma gene2) are more prone to developing ovarian bane and breast cancer.

Breast tumors can also come from inherited mutations especially with CHEK-2 gene, p53 gene (growth suppressor), and ataxia-telangiectasia gene. If these genes are present in your family, you?re at high risk of developing the disease.

The inflammatory breast cancer primarily involves the skin areas of the breast. About 4% of the total numbers of patients are diagnosed with inflammatory breast every year. Oftentimes, it is characterized by general boils or rosiness of the breast skin. Lumps may also be present in some cases.

Here are the different types of breast cancer:

1. Tumor grade ? this is assigned by the pathologist and it is based on the typeface of the melanoma; through the use of the microscope, the pathologist can see how the cells resemble with the breast bandanna. Through the given grading info, the doctor can determine the best handling options

2. Metaplastic carcinoma ? the lesion localizes and you can find different cell types which are not usually present in other forms of breast cancer. The diagnosis and treatment are similar to the dangerous ductal carcinoma.

3. Tubular carcinoma ? the name was derived from the plague appearance as seen from the microscope; this is an insidious type of cancer as compared to the lobular carcinoma and ductal carcinoma.

4. Lobular carcinoma (in situ) ? this is not sarcoma. However, this would mean that the individual is at high risk of developing melanoma. Even if you don?t have lobular carcinoma but your sister and mother has it, you will also be at high risk.

There are also times when an individual develops fibrocystic changes. These refer to cysts and fibrosis. Cysts are crammed fluid sacs while fibrosis is fibrous, or hankie or wound-like formation. Fibrosis and cysts often develop first prior to the breast cancer stage.

If you feel a lump on your breast and you see a slightly dull or filmy nipple discharge, this may already be a symptom of the deadly disease. Only a doctor can accurately diagnose if you have breast cancer or not. Several tests are performed before accurate diagnosis can be given. After that, you can choose among the different treatment options available.

Some patients go for the conventional treatments but there are also those who forgo with the conventional medicines and instead choose the alternative medications. Well, it is up to you to choose the best treatment option to employ. If you can?t afford the conventional medications, you can always choose the alternative medications but oftentimes, you need to consider the stage of the cancer you are in.

The treatments vary and it depends greatly on the types of breast cancer. There is an appropriate treatment for a particular type of cancer. Only the doctor can give you the proper treatment. Don?t attempt to use any other medications unless your doctor tells you so. Breast cancer is a serious matter and it can be life threatening when left untreated. Do some self examinations and if you discover a lump or mass, consult a doctor at once.

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Breast Cancer – Diagnosis,Causes, Symptoms,Treatments,Prognosis

Posted on May 17, 2010 by admin

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women affecting one in eight women during their lives. It may develop at any time but the risk of developing it increases as women get older. It is far more common in post-menopausal women and the risk continues to increase with rising age.

CAUSE
The cause of breast cancer is not known and while it can also occur in men, the much higher occurrence in women implicates estrogen.
Today, breast cancer, like other forms of cancer, is considered to be the final outcome of multiple environmental and hereditary factors.

Breathing secondhand smoke increases breast cancer risk by 70% in younger, primarily pre-menopausal women.
A newly released study indicates a correlation between the drop in breast cancer and the drop in women taking HRT.

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS
Breast cancer elicits so many fears, including those relating to surgery, death, loss of body image and loss of sexuality, however it is more easily treated and often curable if it is found early, therefore regular self examination and screening is essential. Breast cancer usually shows as a lump or thickening in the breast tissue, although most breast lumps are not cancerous.

Certain predisposing factors are clear.
Women at high risk are those who:
Have a family history of breast cancer.
Have long menstrual cycles, began menses early or menopause late.
Have never been pregnant
Were first pregnant after age 31.
Have had unilateral breast cancer.
Have endometrial or Ovarian cancer.
Were exposed to low level ionizing radiation.
Many other possible factors are still under investigation including, obesity, alcohol and environmental factors.

Those with lower risk include women who:
Were pregnant before age 20.
Have had multiple pregnancies.
Are native American or Asian.

Breast cancer occurs more often in the left breast and in the upper quadrant.
Indications of breast cancer other than a lump may include changes in breast size or shape, skin dimpling, nipple inversion, or spontaneous single-nipple discharge.

TYPES
When breast cancer cells invade the dermal lymphatics, small lymph vessels in the skin of the breast, its presentation can resemble skin inflammation and thus is known as inflammatory breast cancer (IBC). Symptoms of inflammatory breast cancer include pain, swelling, warmth and redness throughout the breast, as well as an orange peel texture to the skin referred to as peau d’orange.

The most common pathologic types of breast cancer are invasive ductal carcinoma, malignant cancer in the breast’s ducts, and invasive lobular carcinoma, malignant cancer in the breast’s lobules.
Occasionally, breast cancer presents as metastatic disease, that is, cancer that has spread beyond the original organ. Bone or joint pains can sometimes be manifestations of metastatic breast cancer, as can jaundice or neurological symptoms.

TREATMENT
Much controversy still exists over treatment of breast cancer, options include; Surgery , chemotherapy, Radiotherapy,Hormonal therapies,Herceptin and complementary treatments.

The mainstay of breast cancer treatment is surgery when the tumor is localized, with possible adjuvant hormonal therapy (with tamoxifen or an aromatase inhibitor), chemotherapy, and/or radiotherapy.

In February 2007, the MammaPrint test became the first breast cancer predictor to win formal approval from the Food and Drug Administration. This is a new gene test to help predict whether women with early-stage breast cancer will relapse in 5 or 10 years, this could help influence how aggressively the initial tumor is treated.

Interstitial laser thermotherapy (ILT) is an innovative method of treating breast cancer in a minimally invasive manner and without the need for surgical removal, and with the absence of any adverse effect on the health and survival of the patient during intermediate follow up.

PREVENTION
Routine (annual) mammography of women older than age 40 or 50 is recommended by numerous organizations as a screening method to diagnose early breast cancer and has demonstrated a protective effect in multiple clinical trials.
Women with one or more first-degree relatives (mother, sister, daughter) with premenopausal breast cancer should begin screening at an earlier age.

PROGNOSIS
There are many prognostic factors associated with breast cancer: staging, tumour size and location, grade, whether disease is systemic (has metastasized, or traveled to other parts of the body), recurrence of the disease, and age of patient.

With advances in screening, diagnosis, and treatment, the death rate for breast cancer has declined by about 20% over the past decade, and research is ongoing to develop even more effective screening and treatment programs.

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Breast Cancer – A Complete Overview

Posted on May 16, 2010 by admin

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women affecting one in eight women during their lives. It may develop at any time but the risk of developing it increases as women get older. It is far more common in post-menopausal women and the risk continues to increase with rising age.

CAUSE

The cause of breast cancer is not known and while it can also occur in men, the much higher occurrence in women implicates estrogen.

Today, breast cancer, like other forms of cancer, is considered to be the final outcome of multiple environmental and hereditary factors. Breathing secondhand smoke increases breast cancer risk by 70% in younger, primarily pre-menopausal women.

A newly released study indicates a correlation between the drop in breast cancer and the drop in women taking HRT.

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS

Breast cancer elicits so many fears, including those relating to surgery, death, loss of body image and loss of sexuality, however it is more easily treated and often curable if it is found early, therefore regular self examination and screening is essential. Breast cancer usually shows as a lump or thickening in the breast tissue, although most breast lumps are not cancerous.

Certain predisposing factors are clear.
Women at high risk are those who:
Have a family history of breast cancer.
Have long menstrual cycles, began menses early or menopause late.
Have never been pregnant
Were first pregnant after age 31.
Have had unilateral breast cancer.
Have endometrial or Ovarian cancer.
Were exposed to low level ionizing radiation.
Many other possible factors are still under investigation including, obesity, alcohol and environmental factors.

Those with lower risk include women who:
Were pregnant before age 20.
Have had multiple pregnancies.
Are native American or Asian.

Breast cancer occurs more often in the left breast and in the upper quadrant.
Indications of breast cancer other than a lump may include changes in breast size or shape, skin dimpling, nipple inversion, or spontaneous single-nipple discharge.

TYPES

When breast cancer cells invade the dermal lymphatics, small lymph vessels in the skin of the breast, its presentation can resemble skin inflammation and thus is known as inflammatory breast cancer (IBC). Symptoms of inflammatory breast cancer include pain, swelling, warmth and redness throughout the breast, as well as an orange peel texture to the skin referred to as peau d’orange.

The most common pathologic types of breast cancer are invasive ductal carcinoma, malignant cancer in the breast’s ducts, and invasive lobular carcinoma, malignant cancer in the breast’s lobules.

Occasionally, breast cancer presents as metastatic disease, that is, cancer that has spread beyond the original organ. Bone or joint pains can sometimes be manifestations of metastatic breast cancer, as can jaundice or neurological symptoms.

TREATMENT

Much controversy still exists over treatment of breast cancer, options include; Surgery , chemotherapy, Radiotherapy,Hormonal therapies,Herceptin and complementary treatments.

The mainstay of breast cancer treatment is surgery when the tumor is localized, with possible adjuvant hormonal therapy (with tamoxifen or an aromatase inhibitor), chemotherapy, and/or radiotherapy.

In February 2007, the MammaPrint test became the first breast cancer predictor to win formal approval from the Food and Drug Administration. This is a new gene test to help predict whether women with early-stage breast cancer will relapse in 5 or 10 years, this could help influence how aggressively the initial tumor is treated.

Interstitial laser thermotherapy (ILT) is an innovative method of treating breast cancer in a minimally invasive manner and without the need for surgical removal, and with the absence of any adverse effect on the health and survival of the patient during intermediate followup.

PREVENTION

Routine (annual) mammography of women older than age 40 or 50 is recommended by numerous organizations as a screening method to diagnose early breast cancer and has demonstrated a protective effect in multiple clinical trials.

Women with one or more first-degree relatives (mother, sister, daughter) with premenopausal breast cancer should begin screening at an earlier age.

PROGNOSIS

There are many prognostic factors associated with breast cancer: staging, tumour size and location, grade, whether disease is systemic (has metastasized, or traveled to other parts of the body), recurrence of the disease, and age of patient.

With advances in screening, diagnosis, and treatment, the death rate for breast cancer has declined by about 20% over the past decade, and research is ongoing to develop even more effective screening and treatment programs.

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Breast cancer? Can I beat this?

Posted on May 15, 2010 by admin

What does it mean to have a favorable prognosis?

If your doctor says that you have a favorable prognosis, this means that the breast cancer is likely to respond well to treatment. In the same token, an unfavorable prognosis means that probably the breast cancer may be hard to control.

Breast cancer staging and survival rates.

For breast cancer staging, your doctor will use the information provided from your history and physical and imaging reports to determine your plan of treatment. Successively, the TNM staging systems is commonly used by many practitioners, which assesses the tumor size, palpable nodes, and metastasization of the cancer.

What does the survival rate mean?

The key component to help you understand your prognosis is the cancer survival rate. The estimation your doctor gives you is based on the researched experiences of people with particular commonalities. The probability of recovery from breast cancer hinges on several factors including but not limited to the type of breast cancer and location, its stage, the progression of the disease, your age and overall health, and your response to treatment.

Why is the breast cancer survival rate used?

Health care providers use the cancer survival rate to better assess a patient’s prognosis. Based on the similarities found relating to your situation, you and your doctor will determine the best course of treatments with the greatest chance for remission. You and and your doctor will also be alerted to other factors, such as adverse reactions and treatment schedules.

Should you ignore the cancer survival rates?

Whether or not you want to know the survival rate related to your cancer is entirely up to you. Unfortunately survival rates can’t give any indication about your particular situation, and stats and numbers are a little too detached and not really that helpful. You can predict your risk more closely knowing about your type, grade and stage of breast cancer. As you and your doctor consider your options and begin your treatment, you will find knowing more about your cancer can reduce the anxiety you feel. Tell your doctor if you have any questions or concerns about the numbers associated with your breast cancer.

Please visit www.getbreastcancerhelp.info

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Stage 2 Breast Cancer Survival Rate

Posted on May 14, 2010 by admin

The stages inside Breast Cancer Stage 2 can be fully diverse! Hence, before we tell you the exact survival rate numbers, we have to go back and make clear how is breast cancer staged.

The stage is being assigned depending on how invasive (or not) it is, how many lymph nodes are taken by the cancer, has it reached to other parts of the body, and finally, the stage depends on the dimension of the tumor.

If the tumor is diagnosed as breast cancer stage 2, and it has not spread to the lymph nodes, and it’s diameter is under 2 centimeters, the 5 year survival rate is 88%-92% according to the statistics of the (American) National Cancer Institute.

If the breast cancer tumor diameter is above 2 centimeters but below 5 centimeters it’s a Stage 2A. If it has also spread to lymph nodes, the stage is 2B. The reported 5 year survival rate falls to 76%-81% for Stage 2B. Compare this to the 98%-100% survival rate of an early detected Stage 1, and you’ll understand how early detection is important! Monthly self-cheks simply save women lives. Mammograms are obtainable even in very distant pieces of the Globe.

Does breast cancer survival rate vary across countries? Regrettably, all the women of the human race are at risk of getting the breast cancer. Yes, there are variations across countries and you can find many reports which exploit this subject. However, the bottom line is, these variations are not large. All the advice that is valid for one country is hundred percent valid for another one. Living habits, lifestyle and how often you visit the doctor (early discovery just helps a lot), do make a substantial difference in the survival rate. For instance, in some subcultures women drink more alcohol than in others. That’s how you get the difference across countries, it’s not because of the country itself or climate. It’s strictly because of the living conditions and habits. The same explanation applies to the racial differences.

In US, it is reported that out of women diagnosed with Breast Cancer Stage 2: 29% are white and 39% are black.

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Stage 2 Breast Cancer Survival Rate

Posted on May 13, 2010 by admin

The stages inside Breast Cancer Stage Two can be rather different! So, before we tell you the exact survival rate stat records, we need to go back and describe a bit how is breast cancer staged.

The stage is being assigned depending on how invasive (or not) it is, how many lymph nodes are taken by the cancer, has it spread to other parts of the body, and finally, the stage depends on the size of the tumor.

If the cancer is diagnosed as breast cancer stage 2, and it has not spread to the lymph nodes, and it’s diameter is under 2 centimeters, the 5 year survival rate is 88%-92% according to the statistics of the (American) National Cancer Institute.

If the breast cancer tumor diameter is above 2 centimeters but below 5 centimeters it’s a Stage 2A. If it has also spread to lymph nodes, the stage is 2B. The reported 5 year survival rate falls to 76%-81% for Stage 2B. Compare this to the 98%-100% survival rate of an early detected Stage 1, and you’ll understand how early detection is important! Monthly self-cheks simply save human lives. Mammograms are on hand even in very distant pieces of the Globe.

Does breast cancer survival rate vary across countries? Sorry to say, all the women on Earth are at risk of getting the breast cancer. Yes, there are differences across countries and you can find many reports which exploit this subject. However, the bottom line is, these differences are not substantial. All the advice that is valid for one country is hundred percent valid for another one. Way of life, lifestyle and how often you visit the doctor (early discovery just helps a lot), do make a substantial difference in the survival rate. For instance, in some subcultures women drink more alcohol than in others. That’s why stats show the difference across countries, it’s not because of the country itself or climate. It’s strictly because of the living conditions and habits. The same explanation applies to the racial differences.

In US, it is reported that out of women diagnosed with Breast Cancer Stage 2: 29% are Caucasian and 39% are black.

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