B
reast cancer is the development of abnormal cells that split uncontrollably and have the capacity to infiltrate and destroy ordinary body tissue, beginning in the breasts. Breast cancer has the capacity to spread throughout the body, beginning with the lymph nodes in the armpits.
In recent years, there has been an improvement in survival rates for numerous kinds of cancer owing to enhancements in cancer treatment and screening. Here's important information on cancer.
Symptoms
Here's a list of some of the common signs of cancer. Remember, having any of these doesn't imply you have cancer because other things cause these symptoms as well. They include:
- Unexplained loss of weight
- Fatigue
- Pain
- Lumps in the breast
Breast cancer is most commonly detected via mammograms.
Treatment
Surgery
Surgery is a treatment option in which the surgeon removes cancer from the body. Surgery is the removal of the tumor and some surrounding healthy tissue during an operation. Surgery is also used to examine the nearby axillary lymph nodes, which are under the arm. Generally, the smaller the tumor, the more surgical options a patient has. The types of surgery include lumpectomy and mastectomy. A lumpectomy is the removal of the tumor and a small, cancer-free margin of healthy tissue around the tumor. A lumpectomy may also be called breast-conserving surgery, a partial mastectomy, quadrantectomy, or a segmental mastectomy. A mastectomy is the surgical removal of the entire breast, but there are several types of mastectomies, such as a skin-sparing mastectomy, or a total skin-sparing mastectomy.
Chemotherapy and Hormone Therapy
Chemotherapy and hormone therapy are systemic treatments, so-called because they treat the whole body, not just the cancerous tissue. Your doctor will plan your treatment by taking into consideration a number of factors, including your age, whether or not you are menopausal, your general health, the type and size of the tumour and whether it has spread beyond the breast.
While cancer is a terminal illness, hope exists for sufferers owing to improvements in treatment.
