Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in the US, other than skin cancer.  Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death among women after, lung cancer.  The chance of a woman in the US having some form of invasive breast cancer during her lifetime is slightly less than 1 in 8.  The chance of dying from breast cancer is approximately 1 in 35. 

The good news is breast cancer deaths are on the decline; early detection and better treatment have contributed to the 2.5 million breast cancer survivors in the US. 

Breast cancer is a malignant (cancer) tumor that develops in the cells of the breast.  It is found mostly in women, but can also be found in men.  Most breast cancers begin in the cells that line the ducts, the small tubes that carry milk from the lobules to the nipple. 

Symptoms of Breast Cancer

Screening mammograms have increased in use, which has led to more early detection, prior to the development of symptoms.  But some cases of breast cancer still go undetected and have some of the following symptoms. 

The most common symptom is a new lump or mass in the breast.  A painless, hard lump with uneven edges is more likely to be cancer.  Other symptoms include swelling of all or part of the breast, skin irritation or dimpling, breast pain, nipple pain or inward turned nipples, redness, scaliness or thickening of the nipple or breast skin or a nipple discharge other than breast milk.  Sometimes the cancer can spread to lymph nodes under the arm, these lumps may be detectable before the lumps or swelling in the breast can be identified.  Early detection requires prompt medical attention, if you have any of these symptoms contact your doctor right away. 

Breast Cancer Treatment

Local treatment is used to treat a tumor without impacting the rest of the body; surgery and radiation are common examples of localized treatment.  Systemic treatment generally uses an oral medication or treatment which goes throughout the body to impact cancer cells that may have moved beyond the breast tissue.  Chemotherapy, hormone therapy and targeted therapies are all systemic in design. 

Therapy after surgery has removed all the current cancer cells is known as adjuvant therapy.  This is designed to kill off cancer cells that may be in the bloodstream and not yet formed into tumors or fully developed cancer cells. 

Most women with breast cancer have some form of surgery to remove cancer cells.  Surgery can be breast conserving, where only a part of the breast is removed, a mastectomy where all of the breast tissue and possibly surrounding tissue are removed, or axillary lymph node dissection to determine if the cancer has spread.  After surgery reconstructive or breast implant surgery may be involved to restore the woman’s appearance.  Radiation and chemotherapies may be used in addition or instead of surgery. 

Complementary and alternative therapies may be recommended in some cases.  Many of the complementary therapies are designed to make the patient feel better during the other processes, like chemotherapy.  Alternative treatments may be offered as “cancer cures” some of these methods can be life threatening.  Please consult your physician for the best alternatives for you.