‘What is breast cancer?’

Breast Cancer Symptoms

Friday, November 27th, 2009

Breast Cancer SymptomsIn the early stages of breast cancer women often produces no symptoms. The breast pain is not a sign of cancer although 10% of these patients is often present without any palpable mass.

The first sign is usually a lump, to touch, different note of the breast tissue around it. It is often noted with irregular, hard, painless to the touch. Sometimes color changes occur and tension in the skin of the affected area.

Not all malignant tumors have these characteristics as some have regular borders and are soft to the touch. For this reason, when any abnormality is detected you should consult your doctor.

In the early stages, the lump under the skin can move his fingers. In later stages, the tumor is usually attached to the chest wall or overlying skin and does not scroll. The nodule is often clearly palpable and even armpit nodes may enlarge. The symptoms of these steps are varied and depend on the size and extent of the tumor.

Other signs that may occur are:

- Pain or nipple retraction.
- Irritation of the skin or fissures.
- Inflammation of a portion of the breast.
- Redness or scaling of the skin or nipple.
- Discharge from the nipple than breast milk.

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Stages of Breast Cancer

Wednesday, November 25th, 2009

Breast-cancer-stagesThe cancer has a different prognosis and treatment depending on the stage of development that are in and the risk factors that women have. For this we must perform a series of analysis to facilitate their classification in one or another stage.

The American Joint Committee on Cancer uses the TNM classification system:

* The letter T, followed by a number ranging from 0 to 4 indicates the size of the tumor and spread to the skin or chest wall under the breast. A higher number corresponds to a larger tumor and / or a higher spread to nearby tissues.

* The letter N, followed by a number ranging from 0 to 3 indicates whether the cancer has spread to lymph nodes near the breast and, if so, whether these nodes are attached to other structures.

* The letter M, followed by a 0 or 1, stated whether the cancer has spread to distant organs.

The classification for subgroups is done with numbers ranging from I to IV.

Stage I: indicates that the tumor is less than 2 cm and no metastasis. The relative survival rate 5 years is 98%.

Stage II: includes the following situations:

- No larger than 2 cm but the lymph nodes under the arm are affected.
- Measure 2 to 5 cm and may or may not have spread.
- It is more than 5 cm but the axillary lymph nodes are not affected. The survival rate at 5 years is 88-76%.

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Types of Breast Cancer

Monday, November 23rd, 2009

Most tumors that occur in the breast are benign, not cancerous, and are due to fibrocystic formations. The cyst is a fluid-filled sac and fibrosis is an abnormal development of connective tissue. Fibrosis does not increase the risk of developing a tumor and does not require special treatment. The cysts, if large, can be painful. Removing the fluid with a needle usually take away the pain. The presence of one or more cysts does not favor the occurrence of malignant tumors.

Benign tumors are related mostly to genetic factors. Symptoms that occur are pain and inflammation but not spread to the rest of the body and are not dangerous. In malignant tumors, there are several types depending on the location of the breast where there is abnormal growth of cells and depending on their stage.

Tumors may be localized or have spread through the blood vessels or through lymph vessels, and have led to metastasize, a cancer in an organ distant to the original. Of all cases of breast cancer, only 7-10% of them start metastases.

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What is breast cancer?

Sunday, November 22nd, 2009

Breast cancer is abnormal and disordered growth of cells in this tissue. The breast consists of a series of mammary glands that produce milk after birth, and which are called lobes and lobules. The lobes are connected by pipes, ducts, which are the leading milk to the nipple during lactation, to feed the baby.

The glands (or lobes) and the ducts are embedded in adipose tissue and connective tissue, which, together with the lymphoid tissue, forming the breast.

As a retaining wall, pectoral muscle acts which lies between the ribs and breast.

The skin covers and protects the entire breast structure.

The lymphatic system consists of containers and vessels or tubes that contain and carry the lymph, a colorless liquid consisting of white blood cells, mostly lymphocytes. These cells recognize any substance foreign to the body and release substances that destroy the offending agent.

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