Breast Cancer - Causes, Symptoms and Treatment

By: Scott Gillespie
Submitted: 2008-10-30 12:38:16
Print this article | Tell a friend | For publisher |

Rating:

 

Breast cancer is the growth of abnormal cells in the breast. These abnormal cells grow and divide faster than normal cells. They can also invade the breast and surrounding tissue and spread to other parts of the body.

Breast cancer develops from the cells that line the breast, lobules and the draining ducts.

Cancer cells that remain confined to the lobule and the ducts are called 'in situ' or 'non-invasive'. They are sometimes also referred to as pre-cancers in recognition of the fact that these cells have not yet gained the ability to spread to other parts of the body, which is the feature that most people associate with cancer.

What causes breast cancer?

Being female and getting older are the two main risk factors in the development of breast cancer.

Nine out of ten women who develop breast cancer do not have a family history of the disease. The risk of getting breast cancer is greater for a women whose mother, sister, or daughter was diagnosed with breast cancer — especially when she was fairly young (under 50).

family history of breast cancer (especially in a mother, sister or daughter diagnosed before menopause or if mutations on BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes are present)

Previous breast cancer. A woman who previously had breast cancer and has been cured has a greater chance for having a new breast cancer episode occur than is a woman who never had the disease. New tumors appearing inside someone with a previous history of cancer who has been cancer free are not necessarily related to or caused by old eradicated tumors.

Women who start their periods at an early age (11 or younger) or experience a late menopause (55 or older) have a slightly higher risk of developing breast cancer. Conversely, being older at the time of the first menstrual period and early menopause tend to protect one from breast cancer.

Symptoms of breast cancer

Change in the size, shape, or feel of the breast or nipple -- for example, you may have redness, dimpling, or puckering that looks like the skin of an orange

The most serious complication of breast cancer is metastasis. That's when some cells from a tumor break off and move to other areas of the body - through either the blood or the lymphatic vessels - invading the tissue at new, possibly distant sites. When breast cancer cells metastasize, it's most commonly to the lymph nodes, lungs, liver, bones, brain, and skin. It can take years - even after the breast tumor is diagnosed and treated - before cancer that has spread from the original tumor appears.

Between ages 41 - 58, there may be a small bit of non-bloody leakage from the nipples of both breasts. This leakage is usually due to hormonal changes and is not worrisome. However, if the fluid is leaking from only one nipple, is a new discharge, or is bloody, there are several tests that can be done to discover what is causing it.

Treatment of breast cancer

Lumpectomy -- In this procedure, a surgeon removes the breast cancer and some normal tissue around it. This procedure usually removes all the cancer with little change in the appearance of your breast. Typically, the surgeon takes out some  lymph nodes from under your arm to determine if the cancer has spread. If you have a lumpectomy, you are likely to have radiation therapy as well. Radiation destroys cancer cells that may not have been removed by surgery.

Local Treatment. Surgery and radiation are considered local therapies because they directly treat the tumor, breast, lymph nodes, or other specific regions. Surgery is usually the standard initial treatment.

Hormone therapy with tamoxifen or an aromatase inhibitor, to change the way hormones in the body cause cancer growth.

Treatment with trastuzumab (Herceptin) if your breast cancer tests positive for human epidermal growth factor (HER-2/neu).

Article source: Expert Articles