Breast Cancer 
Cancer is not just disease but rather a group of diseases

Normal body cells grow, divide, and die in an orderly fashion.  During the early years of a person's life, normal cells divide more rapidly until the person becomes an adult.  After that, normal cells of most tissue divide only to replace worn-out or dying cells and to repair injuries. Cancer cells, however, continue to grow and divide, and can spread to other parts of the body.  Cancer is  a group of many related diseases.  All forms of cancer cause cells in the body to change and grow out of control. Most types of cancer cells form a lump or mass called a tumor.  Cells can break away and travel to other parts of the body.  There they can continue to grow. Most kinds of cancer are named after the part of the body where the cancer first starts.  Breast cancer begins in the breast tissue.  When  breast cancer spreads to the lungs, it is still breast cancer, not lung cancer.

There are several types of breast tumors.  Most are benign; that is, they are not cancer.  Benign breast tumors are abnormal growths, but they do not spread outside the breast and they are not life-threatening.

Common types of Breast cancer:

1. Lobular carcinoma in situ is a benign tumor.  Although not a true cancer, this condition increases a woman's risk of developing cancer later.

2. Invasive lobular carcinoma starts in the milk glands.  It can spread to other parts of the body.

3. Ductal carcinoma in situ is a breast cancer at its earliest stage called stage 0.  It is confined to the ducts and can be cured nearly hundred percent if detected early at this stage.

4.  Invasive Ductal carcinoma is the most common type of breast cancer.  This cancer starts in the milk duct and breaks through the wall of the duct, and invade the fatty tissue of the breast. From there it spreads to the other parts of the body.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women, other than skin cancer.  It is the second leading cause of cancers death in women, after lung cancer. Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among women aged 40 to 55.

Risk Factors:

1. Genetic:  Breast cancer is linked to mutations or changes of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes.  If  a woman has inherited a mutated gene from either parent, she is more likely to develop breast cancer. It is also higher among women whose close blood relatives have this disease.

2. Race:  White women are slightly more likely to develop breast cancer than are African-American women.  But African-Americans are more likely to die of this cancer.  Asian and Hispanic women have a lower risk of developing breast cancer.

3. Lifestyles:  a)  It is still not clear what part birth control pills might play in breast cancer risk.  It may be that women using birth control pills have a slightly greater risk of breast cancer.  b)  Some studies suggest that long-term use of hormone replacement therapy, for relief of menopause symptoms may also slightly increase the risk of breast cancer (Women should talk to their doctors about the pros and cons of using HTR/ERT).  c)  Not breast feeding?

4. Alcohol:  Use of alcohol is clearly linked to increased risk of developing breast cancer.  Women who have one alcoholic drink a day have a very small increased risk.  Those who have 2 to 5 drinks daily have about 1.5 times the risk of women who drinks no alcohol. Smoking and Environmental pollution was not linked directly to the breast cancer.

5. Diet:  Studies of fat in the diet as it relates to breast cancer risk have often given conflicting results.  However, American Cancer Society recommends  maintaining a healthy weight and limiting your use of high-fat foods, especially those from animal sources.

6. Exercise:  Some studies suggest that exercise in youth might give life-long protection against breast cancer.

At this time, there is no certain way to prevent breast cancer.  For now, the best strategy is to reduce risk factors whenever possible. The earlier breast cancer is found, the better the chances for successful treatment.  Because early breast cancer does not produce symptoms, it's important for all women to follow the guidelines for finding breast cancer early.  These include the following:

1. Breast Self Examination: The best time to do BSE is about a week after your period ends, when your breasts not swollen or tender.  If you are not having regular periods, do BSE on the same day every month.

2. Mammography:  Between the ages 20 to 39, women should have a clinical breast examination every three years.  A mammogram and a breast exam by a doctor every year for over the age 40.

Together, these methods offer the best chance of finding breast cancer early.

Signs and Symptoms: Click for  Chart

1. The most common signs of breast cancer is a new lump or mass.

2. A lump that is painless, hard, and has irregular edges is more likely to be cancer.  But some cancers are tender, soft, and rounded.  So it's important to have anything unusual checked by your doctor.

3. The other signs include a swelling of part of the breast, skin irritation, nipple pain, redness or scaliness of the nipple and a discharge other than breast milk.

If the Cancer is suspected by any method (mammogram and/or breast ultrasound), other tests will need to be done to find out if cancer is really present.  The only way to know for sure if you have breast cancer is to do biopsy. The tissue removed during the biopsy is examined in the lab to see whether the cancer is invasive or benign.  The biopsy test result is also given a grade.  In General, a lower grade number means a slower growing cancer, while a higher number means a faster-growing cancer.  After all the tests the final staging is done. Staging is the process of finding out how far the cancer has spread.  This is very important because your treatment and the outlook for your recovery depends on the stage of your cancer.

Finding breast cancer early:  AMA Link