Breast cancer.
It is cancer that begins in breast tissues.There are 2 main types of breast cancer:
The ductal carcinoma that begins in the tubes (ducts) that carry milk from the breast to the nipple.Most breast cancers are of this kind.
Carcinoma lobular begins in parts of the breasts, called lobilles, which produce milk.
Rare occasions, breast cancer can start in other areas of the breast.
Causes
LOS Breast cancer risk factors are those that increase the likelihood that you have breast cancer:
You can control some risk factors, such as drinking alcohol. Others, like family history, can not control them.
The more risk factors have, the more risk will increase. However, it does not mean that you will have cancer. Many women who present breast cancer have no known risk factor or family history.
Understanding your risk factors can help you know how to prevent breast cancer.
Breast implants, the use of antiperspirants, and the use of rod holders do not increase the risk of breast cancer. Nor are there data that prove a direct link between breast cancer and pesticides.
Symptoms
Precoz breast cancer often does not cause symptoms. For this reason, the regular brands of the breasts are important, so cancers that do not have symptoms can be detected on time.
As cancer grows, symptoms may include:
Tumor tumor or tumor in the armpit that is hard, has irregular edges and generally does not hurt.
Changing the size, shape or texture of the breasts or nipple. For example, redness, holes or frincy that looks like orange peel can be presented.
Nipple liquid, which can be bloody, of clear to yellowish or greenish, and look like pus.
In men, the symptoms of breast cancer include mammary tumor, as well as pain and sensitivity in the breasts.
The symptoms of advanced breast cancer may include:
Bone pain
Pain or discomfort in the breasts
Skin ulcers
swelling of lymph nodes in the armpit (next to the breast with cancer)
Weight Loss
Tests and exams
The health care provider will ask you about your symptoms and risk factors and then carry out a physical examination, which includes both breasts, armpits and neck and chest zone.
Women are recommended to take self-examination of breasts every month.However, the importance of self-exams to detect breast cancer is debatable.
The exams used to diagnose and monitor people with breast cancer may include:
Magnetic resonance of the breasts to help better identify mammary tumor or evaluate an abnormal change in a mammography
Ultrasound of the breasts to show if the tumor is solid or it is full of liquid
Breast biopsy: using methods such as aspiratory biopsy, ultrasound guided, stereotactic or open
Computed tomography to see if the cancer has spread outside the breast
mammography to detect breast cancer or help identify tumor or mammary protrusion
Positron emission tomography (TEP) to verify if the cancer has been disseminated
Sentinel lymph node biopsy to verify if cancer has spread to lymph nodes
If the doctor knows that you do have breast cancer, they will make you more exams. This is called a staging, with which it is verified if the cancer has spread. Staging helps guide treatment and control. Likewise, it gives you an idea of what you can expect in the future.
The stages or phases of breast cancer range from 0 to IV.The higher the number of the stadium, the more advanced the cancer will be.
Treatment
Treatment is based on many factors, which include:
The type of cancer
The Stadium of Cancer (Staging is a tool that your suppliers use to find out how advanced the cancer is)
If the cancer is sensitive or not at certain hormones
If the cancer produces in excess or not a protein called HER2 / NEU
Treatments for cancer may include:
Hormonal therapy.
Chemotherapy, which uses medicines to destroy cancer cells.
Radiotherapy, which is used to destroy the cancerous tissue.
Surgery to remove the cancerous tissue: a tumorectomy to remove the mammary tumor. A mastectomy for removing all or part of the breast and possibly the close structures. Lymphatic nodules can also be removed during surgery.
The targeted treatment uses medicine to attack changes in genes in cancer cells. Hormone therapy is an example of directed therapy. Blocks certain hormones that stimulate cancer growth.
Treatment for cancer can be local or systemic:
Local treatments involve only the area of the disease. Radiation and surgery are forms of this type of treatment. They are more effective when cancer has not spread outside the breast.
Systemic treatments affect the whole body. Chemotherapy and hormonotherapy are types of systemic treatments.
Most women receive a combination of treatments. For women with breast cancer in Stage I, II or III, the main objective is to treat cancer and prevent it from reappearing (recurrence). For women with stage IV cancer, the goal is to improve symptoms and help people live longer.
In most cases, stadium cancer IV can not be cured.
Stadium 0 and Ductal Carcinoma In situ (CDIS): Standard treatment is tumorectomy more radiation or mastectomy.
Stage I and II: The standard treatment is the tumorectomy plus radiation or mastectomy with some type of extirpation of lymph nodes. Likewise, hormonotherapy, chemotherapy and targeted treatment can be recommended after surgery.
Stadium III: The treatment includes surgery possibly followed by chemotherapy, hormone therapy and other directed treatment.
Stadium IV: The treatment includes surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, hormone therapy or other directed therapy or a combination of these treatments.
After treatment, some women will continue to take medicines for a while. All women will continue to have blood tests, mammograms and other exams after treatment to monitor the return of cancer or the development of another breast cancer.
Women who have undergone a mastectomy can be practiced a reconstructive surgery of the breasts. This will be done either at the time of mastectomy or later.
