Cancer Treatment

At present the best fight against breast cancer is early detection of tumor as increase the chances of successful treatment.

¬ self-examination
Systematic self-examination can detect tumors smaller than that can detect the doctor or nurse because the woman is familiar with your breasts and can detect any small change.
In the screening tests, the doctor finds that there is no irregularity in the breast, also there are no swollen lymph nodes under the arm.

The self-examination should be performed after menstruation, menopausal women should associate with a day of the month, it should always be performed in similar conditions.

Women should be quiet and do it in place that believes most appropriate. Some women seem more comfortable when executing it in the shower, however, others may prefer to do it at bedtime.

The most appropriate way to observe changes in the breast is placed in front of a mirror with arms at your sides. You have to observe the symmetry of the breasts, skin appearance, profile, etc..

We must find red spots, bumps or dimples. The appearance must not remember the orange peel. The nipples and areolas must not be recessed or sunken.

Once done, it has to repeat the operation but with arms raised over the neck. The breasts should be raised in the same way and in that position, check that there is no bulge or dimple.

Palpation can be performed once soapy in the shower, or lying in bed with a pillow under your shoulder for the breast to be examined. It should be repeated in different positions: lying and standing.
You should use the opposite hand to the breast to be felt. The pressure will be well enough to recognize the breast.

You can perform several moves for exploration:

1) With the tips of three fingers have to go with circular movements from the outer breast toward the nipple, like a spiral.

2) Another move that can be done with fingers is in the form of staggered, moving through the breast from one side to another.

3) The third movement is radial, starting from the nipple outward.

It should be very careful in the area of the upper outer quadrant, as they are near the axillary nodes, and that is where the largest number of detected tumors.

You have to compress the nipple a bit and see if there is a discharge (notify physician if this is so, try to identify the color of discharge).

Having explored the breast examination should be performed under the arm to try to discover the existence of packages in this area.

The examination must be in both breasts and armpits.

¬ Mammography
Women with risk factors should get a mammogram and a clinical examination annually after age 40.

Women who have no known risk factors should have a recent mammogram every two years beginning at age 40 and annually after age 50. However, this issue has been controversial and recent studies suggest the need to have a mammogram every year between 40 and 49.

Mammography is an exploration that uses low-energy X-rays to locate abnormal areas in the breast. This technique involves placing the breast between two plates and pressed for a few seconds while performing radiographs.

There is no radiation hazard of this technique, as are low power.

It is one of the best techniques to detect breast cancer in its early stages.

Mammography performed at intervals of 1 to 2 years, reduces death from the disease by 25% to 35% in women 50 years or more with no symptoms.

To confirm the diagnosis in positive cases, perform a biopsy after a mammogram.

¬ Ultrasound
It is a secondary technique in the diagnosis of breast cancer. Ultrasounds are used which are converted to images.

Their usefulness lies in that it can differentiate between tumors formed by fluid (cysts) from solid masses. The importance of detecting this difference is great because the cysts do not usually need treatment if no other symptoms, while solid masses require biopsy.

In addition, young women with dense breasts is the radiologist may choose to do an ultrasound instead of mammography as this test has more sensitivity in these cases.

¬ magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
This technique uses magnetic fields and spectra emitted by phosphorus in body tissues and becomes the image. With it you can see the tumor vasculature. (* See it in pictures)

¬ computerized axial tomography (CT)
It consists of an X-ray technique uses a rotating beam, which is displayed with different areas of the body from different angles. Allows for the diagnosis of metastasis, not breast cancer itself.

¬ Positron emission tomography (PET)
Involves injecting a drug in combination with glucose radio will be taken up by cancer cells, cancer exist, because they consume more glucose. The radio will be located drug areas where the tumor.

¬ thermography
It is a technique that records temperature differences. Never use it very often.
Of all the above techniques, the most widely used are the mammography and ultrasound. If any doubt exists, which is not settled with these two, the other is used. None is better than the other but with each body area is in a different way.

¬ Biopsy
Once detected the tumor in one or more of the above techniques, you must perform a biopsy to confirm the diagnosis.
There are several types of biopsies according to the technique used:

Fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNA) involves introducing a needle into the tumor site while the physician palpated the mass. If the mass can not be felt, this technique can be performed using ultrasound to locate the needle in the exact spot where the mass is. Then draw the liquid through the needle.

If the liquid is clear, it is likely to be a benign cyst, but it may be that the liquid is cloudy or blood and the tumor is benign. If the mass is solid, are small fragments of tissue removed.
Microscopic analysis of this sample (both fluid and tissue) is what will determine whether benign or cancerous.

Sometimes the result may not be satisfactory to the doctor, what is required by another type of biopsy or keeps track of the patient.

* Surgical biopsy: Sometimes surgery is used to remove part or all of the mass in the operating room for subsequent microscopic examination. When he removes part of the fabric, it is called incisional biopsy. This usually takes place in very large tumors.

* Excisional biopsy is one in which removes the entire lump or suspicious area, the margin surrounding the tumor but have normal appearance.

* Radio surgical biopsy or mammographic localization biopsy: Used when no palpable mass and displayed through mammography. The technique is to locate the tumor through several mammograms and insert a needle into the exact area where the breast mass. You can leave a mark through the needle with activated carbon or a thin wire is left that will guide the surgeon later.

There is talk of biopsies in one or two times, depending on whether surgery is performed at the same time of biopsy or waiting all the result of microscopic analysis, and a few days after the biopsy, tumor excision was performed and the breast resection.

The advantage of the biopsy in a while is that only perform surgery, but the disadvantage is that women, when entering the operating room, not sure if you have cancer and if you come up with a mastectomy, so that the stress is very strong.

With biopsy in two days, the patient has more time to your situation, go over the biopsy quiet and to consult with your doctor any questions you have before the intervention.

After removing the tissue by biopsy, the pathologist examine the sample and determine the stage of the tumor and its ability to spread rapidly.

The waiting time for biopsy result varies depending on if done at a time or two. If at one time, the removed tissue is frozen, rolled and viewed microscopically. The result will take about 15-20 minutes. If done in two stages, the result will take seven to 10 days.
Cancers composed of more primitive cells (undifferentiated) or those with large numbers of dividing cells are usually more severe. That will also perform a complete examination to determine if any other body part is affected. The tests will include:

¬ Chest x-ray to rule out pulmonary involvement, abdominal ultrasound to assess the situation, liver, bone scan and blood tests to assess the correct bone marrow function, liver and kidney.

¬ In addition, the Department of Pathology, the pathologist will examine a number of molecular factors in the tumor:

* Estrogen and progesterone receptors: through the biopsy of the tumor tissue will be analyzed whether tumor cells have these receptors, molecules that recognize hormones (estrogen and progesterone). Both normal cells as the tumor may have these receptors. Those tumors that contain these receptors are termed ER-positive and PR-positive and have a better prognosis than negative and more likely to respond to hormonal therapy.

* Proof of HER2/neu: another substance to be examined during the biopsy, the amount of protein HER/2nu, a cell growth-promoting protein, and the genes responsible for producing more or less of that protein . The high presence of the protein or gene indicates a worse prognosis of cancer because they tend to grow and spread more quickly. This oncogene occurs in 20% -25% of all cases. Once their presence known proteins, and only in certain situations, can be given a drug called Herceptin which prevents HER/2nu protein stimulates growth of cancer cells.

¬ Other tests: Another possibility to understand the risk of cancer recurrence is the determination of protein bag1 that, when elevated, indicates that the patient has more chance of disease-free survival.

Although there are more tests to detect other markers, similar to HER2/neu and ER or PR, the most common are those mentioned above because they are the most useful and to advise on the most appropriate type of treatment and that treatment exists for it.

Tags: best fight against breast cancer, Biopsy, diagnosis of breast cancer, Excisional biopsy, mammographic localization biopsy, Radio surgical biopsy, Surgical biopsy