Breast Cancer
Breast cancer is the most diagnosed cancer among women around the world.1. It occurs most often after menopause. It is not the most deadly: lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer death among women.
One in 9 women may be suffering from breast cancer in her lifetime. Men may also be affected, but rarely. Less than 1% of cases of breast cancer affecting men.
The number of patients increased slightly but steadily over the past 3 decades. For cons, the mortality rate has steadily declined over the same period, thanks to advances in screening, diagnosis and treatment.
The breast consists of fat, glands and channels (see diagram cons). The glands arranged in lobules produce milk and canals (ducts) are used to transport the milk to the nipple. Breast tissue is influenced by hormones produced by women in varying amounts throughout their life (puberty, pregnancy, lactation). These hormones are estrogen and progesterone.
Cancer indicates the presence of abnormal cells. These abnormal cells multiply uncontrollably. Cancer cells can remain in the breast or spread throughout the body by the blood or lymphatic vessels. Most of the time, the progression of breast cancer takes many months and even years.
Types of Breast Cancer
There are different forms of breast cancer, each with an evolution of its own. They can be divided into two broad categories: non-invasive cancer or in situ, which only affects the milk ducts, and invasive cancer or invasive, spreading into the fatty breast tissue. (Note, that the cancer is invasive does not mean that form metastases, but it invades the tissue around the channels).