Breast cancer is an uncontrolled growth of breast cells. Cancer occurs as a result of mutations, or abnormal
changes, in the genes responsible for regulating the growth of cells and
keeping them healthy. The genes are in each cell’s nucleus, which acts as
the “control room” of each cell. Normally, the cells in our bodies replace
themselves through an orderly process of cell growth: healthy new cells take
over as old ones die out. But over time, mutations can “turn on” certain genes
and “turn off” others in a cell. That changed cell gains the ability to keep
dividing without control or order, producing more cells just like it and forming
a tumor.
A tumor can be benign (not dangerous to health) or malignant (has the
potential to be dangerous). Benign tumors are not considered cancerous: their
cells are close to normal in appearance, they grow slowly, and they do not
invade nearby tissues or spread to other parts of the body. Malignant tumors
are cancerous. Left unchecked, malignant cells eventually can spread beyond the
original tumor to other parts of the body.
The term “breast cancer” refers to a malignant tumor that has developed
from cells in the breast. Usually breast cancer either begins in the cells of
the lobules, which are the milk-producing glands, or the ducts, the passages
that drain milk from the lobules to the nipple. Less commonly, breast cancer
can begin in the stromal tissues, which include the fatty and fibrous
connective tissues of the breast.
Over time, cancer cells can
invade nearby healthy breast tissue and make their way into the underarm lymph
nodes, small organs that filter out foreign substances in the body. If cancer
cells get into the lymph nodes, they then have a pathway into other parts of
the body. The breast cancer’s stage refers to how far the cancer cells have
spread beyond the original tumor (see the Stages of
breast cancer table for more information).
There are steps every person can
take to help the body stay as healthy as possible, such as eating a balanced
diet, maintaining a healthy weight, not smoking, limiting alcohol, and
exercising regularly. While these may have some impact on your risk of getting
breast cancer, they cannot eliminate the risk.
Stage
|
Definition
|
Stage 0
|
Cancer
cells remain inside the breast duct, without invasion into normal adjacent
breast tissue
|
Stage
IA
|
The
tumor measures up to 2 cm AND the cancer has not spread outside the breast;
no lymph nodes are involved
|
Stage IB
|
There
is no tumor in the breast, small groups of cancer cells – larger than 0.2 millimeter
but not larger than 2 millimeters – are found in the lymph nodes OR there is
a tumor in the breast that is no larger than 2 centimeters, and there are
small groups of cancer cells – larger than 0.2 millimeter but not larger than
2 millimeters – in the lymph nodes.
|
Stage IIA
|
No
tumor can be found in the breast, but cancer cells are found in the axillary
lymph nodes (the lymph nodes under the arm) OR the tumor measures 2
centimeters or smaller and has spread to the axillary lymph nodes OR
the tumor is larger than 2 but no larger than 5 centimeters and has not spread to the axillary lymph nodes. |
Stage IIB
|
The
tumor is larger than 2 but no larger than 5 centimeters and has spread to the
axillary lymph nodes OR the tumor is larger than 5 centimeters but
has not spread to the axillary lymph nodes.
|
Stage IIIA
|
No
tumor is found in the breast. Cancer is found in axillary lymph nodes that
are sticking together or to other structures, or cancer may be found in lymph
nodes near the breastbone OR the tumor is any size. Cancer has spread
to the axillary lymph nodes, which are sticking together or to other
structures, or cancer may be found in lymph nodes near the breastbone.
|
Stage IIIB
|
The
tumor may be any size and has spread to the chest wall and/or skin of the
breast AND may
have spread to axillary lymph nodes that are clumped together or sticking to
other structures, or cancer may have spread to lymph nodes near the
breastbone.
|
Stage IIIC
|
There
may either be no sign of cancer in the breast or a tumor may be any size and
may have spread to the chest wall and/or the skin of the breast AND the
cancer has spread to lymph nodes either above or below the collarbone AND the
cancer may have spread to axillary lymph nodes or to lymph nodes near the
breastbone.
|
Stage IV
|
The cancer
has spread – or metastasized – to other part of body
|
Symptoms
of Breast Cancer
Initially, breast cancer may not cause any symptoms. A lump may be too
small for you to feel or to cause any unusual changes you can notice on your
own. Often, an abnormal area turns up on a screening mammogram (X-ray of the
breast), which leads to further testing.
In some cases, however, the first sign of breast cancer is a new lump or
mass in the breast that you or your doctor can feel. A lump that is painless,
hard, and has uneven edges is more likely to be cancer. But sometimes cancers
can be tender, soft, and rounded. So it's important to have anything unusual
checked by your doctor.
According to the American Cancer Society, any of the following unusual
changes in the breast can be a symptom of breast cancer:
·
swelling of all or part of the breast
·
skin irritation or dimpling
·
breast pain
·
nipple pain or the nipple turning inward
·
redness, scaliness, or thickening of the nipple or
breast skin
·
a nipple discharge other than breast milk
·
a lump in the underarm area
These changes also can be signs of less serious conditions that are not
cancerous, such as an infection or a cyst. It’s important to get any breast
changes checked out promptly by a doctor.
There are
different types of treatment for patients with breast cancer.
Different types of treatment are available for patients
with breast cancer. Some treatments arestandard (the currently used treatment), and some are being
tested in clinical trials. There are basically six (6) standard treatment are
used such as Surgery,
Sentinel
lymph node biopsy followed by surgery, Radiation
therapy, Chemotherapy,
Hormone
therapy, Targeted
therapy. However, for this entry I will share four (4) main
treatment only.
For details you may visit : http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/treatment/breast/Patient/page5#Keypoint21
Surgery
Most patients with breast cancer have surgery to
remove the cancer from the breast. Some of thelymph nodes under
the arm are usually taken out and looked at under a microscope to
see if they contain cancer cells.
Breast-conserving
surgery, an operation to remove the cancer but not the breast
itself, includes the following:
- Lumpectomy:
Surgery to remove a tumor (lump)
and a small amount of normal tissue around
it.
- Partial
mastectomy: Surgery to remove the part of the breast that has
cancer and some normal tissue around it. The lining over the chest muscles
below the cancer may also be removed. This procedure is also called a segmental
mastectomy.
Breast-conserving surgery. Dotted lines show the area
containing the tumor that is removed and some of the lymph nodes that may be
removed.
Patients who are treated with breast-conserving
surgery may also have some of the lymph nodes under the arm removed for biopsy.
This procedure is called lymph node
dissection. It may be done at the same time as the breast-conserving
surgery or after. Lymph node dissection is done through a separate incision.
Other types of surgery include the
following:
·
Total
mastectomy: Surgery to remove the whole breast that has cancer. This
procedure is also called a simple mastectomy. Some of the lymph nodes under the
arm may be removed for biopsy at the same time as the breast surgery or after.
This is done through a separate incision.
Total (simple) mastectomy. The
dotted line shows where the entire breast is removed. Some lymph nodes under
the arm may also be removed.
·
Modified
radical mastectomy: Surgery to remove the whole breast that has
cancer, many of the lymph nodes under the arm, the lining over the chest
muscles, and sometimes, part of the chest wall muscles.
Modified radical mastectomy. The
dotted line shows where the entire breast and some lymph nodes are removed.
Part of the chest wall muscle may also be removed.
Chemotherapy may
be given before surgery to remove the tumor. When given before surgery,
chemotherapy will shrink the tumor and reduce the amount of tissue that needs
to be removed during surgery. Treatment given before surgery is called neoadjuvant
therapy.
Even if the doctor removes all
the cancer that can be seen at the time of the surgery, some patients may be
given radiation
therapy, chemotherapy, or hormone
therapy after surgery to kill any cancer cells that are left.
Treatment given after the surgery, to lower the risk that the cancer will come
back, is called adjuvant
therapy.
If a patient is going to have a mastectomy, breast
reconstruction (surgery to rebuild a breast’s shape after a
mastectomy) may be considered. Breast reconstruction may be done at the time of
the mastectomy or at a future time. The reconstructed breast may be made with
the patient’s own (nonbreast) tissue or by using implants filled
with saline or silicone gel.
Before the decision to get an implant is made, patients can call the Food and
Drug Administration's (FDA) Center for Devices and Radiologic Health at
1-888-INFO-FDA (1-888-463-6332) or visit the FDA's Web site for more information on
breast implants.
Sentinel lymph node biopsy followed by surgery
Sentinel
lymph node biopsy is the removal of the sentinel
lymph node during surgery. The sentinel lymph node is the first
lymph node to receive lymphatic
drainage from a tumor. It is the first lymph node the cancer is
likely to spread to from the tumor. A radioactive substance
and/or blue dye is injectednear
the tumor. The substance or dye flows through the lymph ducts to
the lymph nodes. The first lymph node to receive the substance or dye is
removed. A pathologist views
the tissue under amicroscope to
look for cancer cells. If cancer cells are not found, it may not be necessary
to remove more lymph nodes. After the sentinel lymph node biopsy, the surgeon removes
the tumor (breast-conserving surgery or mastectomy).
Sentinel
lymph node biopsy of the breast. A radioactive substance and/or blue dye is
injected near the tumor (first panel). The injected material is detected
visually and/or with a probe that detects radioactivity (middle panel). The
sentinel nodes (the first lymph nodes to take up the material) are removed and
checked for cancer cells (last panel).
Radiation therapy is a cancer
treatment that uses high-energy x-rays or
other types of radiation to
kill cancer cells or keep them from growing. There are two types of radiation
therapy. External
radiationtherapy uses a machine outside the body to send radiation
toward the cancer. Internal
radiationtherapy uses a radioactive substance sealed in needles, seeds,
wires, or catheters that
are placed directly into or near the cancer. The way the radiation therapy is
given depends on the type and stageof
the cancer being treated.
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is a cancer
treatment that uses drugs to
stop the growth of cancer cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping
them from dividing. When chemotherapy is taken by mouth or injected into avein or
muscle, the drugs enter the bloodstream and can reach cancer cells throughout
the body (systemic
chemotherapy). When chemotherapy is placed directly into the cerebrospinal
fluid, an organ,
or a body cavity such
as the abdomen,
the drugs mainly affect cancer cells in those areas (regional
chemotherapy). The way the chemotherapy is given depends on the type
and stage of the cancer being treated.
Source for the
article : http://www.breastcancer.org/symptoms/understand_bc/symptoms
Source for the
article : http://www.breastcancer.org/symptoms/understand_bc/what_is_bc
**********************************************************************************************************
Developing breast cancer is not
your or anyone's fault. Feeling guilty, or telling yourself that breast cancer
happened because of something you or anyone else did, is not productive.
***********************************************************************************************************
Prevention is better than cure
By wearing Premium Beautiful
consistently everyday (min 8 hours a day) able to reduce in size the lumps
inside our breast. Why? It is because of Premium Beautiful uniquely design with
Far Infrared Rays (F.I.R technology). Thus I would like to encourage
all womens out there to love our health, our breast before anything happen to
our breast. Our breast is our previous Asset. Lets wear Premium Beautiful
for our breast protection.
Dengan pemakaian
Premium Beautiful secara consistent dan berterusan, Far Infrared Rays (F.I.R)
di dalam Premium Beautiful tersebut mampu mengecutkan sebarang ketulan /lumps
di dalam breast kiter. So, I menyeru kepada wanita di luar sana, sayangilah
breast kita sebelum anything happen kat breast kita. Breast kita adalah harta
kita. Marilah kita samer-samer menentang breast cancer yang menjadi musuh utama
setiap wanita. Pakailah Premium Beautiful untuk protection breast kita
