Cancer Treatment

Treatment is determined by tumor size and whether there has been spread to lymph or other body areas. Usually, when the tumor is less than 1 centimeter in diameter, surgery is enough to end cancer and chemotherapy is not needed. However, there are few cases that do not require an adjunct to surgery or with chemotherapy or hormone therapy. Currently the most important prognostic factor remains the lymph node: the number of involved nodes oncologist to help select subsequent treatment.

The surgical procedure was always done by a surgeon / gynecologist expert in breast cancer, allows local control of the disease and carry out an accurate diagnosis because it can determine the characteristics of the tumor and the number of nodes affected by malignant cells .

Radiotherapy is the use of high-energy rays such as X rays, to destroy or decrease the number of cancer cells. Local treatment is given after conservative surgery (when used after mastectomy is because it believes that there is a risk that the tumor is played). It develops over about 20-30 days (the oncologist and the radiologist felt it appropriate), and the patient goes to an outpatient clinic or room where radiation therapy is performed, does not have to be hospitalized for it.

As such, the treatment lasts a few minutes. It is not painful but it is something like an X-ray radiation only is greater and is concentrated in the affected area. What is achieved with radiotherapy is to reduce the size of the tumor, then surgery to remove or, upon completion of the operation, clear the area of malignant cells.

Side effects of this treatment include fatigue, or fatigue, swelling and heaviness in the breast, redness and dry skin (like after a sunburn), which usually disappear after six or 12 months. The action of the apparatus is usually very focused so that its effects are usually short and usually well tolerated by patients. A good combination of rest, physical activity and delicate garments can reduce this discomfort. (* See it in pictures)

Chemotherapy involves the administration of drugs that kill cancer cells and avoid the appearance of tumor in other parts of the body. There are several routes of administration, but the most common are the oral and intravenous.

No hospitalization is necessary for this treatment, can be done on an outpatient basis. This will depend on the state of the patient and duration of treatment, one track can last between four and eight months. The chemotherapy can be done as an adjuvant, ie, added to surgery or as sole treatment for cases of recurrence, and surgery is not a solution.

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy is one that is performed before surgery and only in some cases. Your objectivism is to reduce the size of the tumor and to perform an operation that will help to preserve the breast in women for whom the first option was a mastectomy.

Women with a recent diagnosis should know that there is an alternative to mastectomy (radical surgery) and should start talking to your doctor about the possibility of receiving quimioterapita first.

Adjuvant chemotherapy was performed after surgery to kill any cancer cells remaining in microscopic quantities and prevent their growth.

Only 10% of all patients who receive no postoperative treatment and which are those with no affected lymph nodes and the tumor is less than 1cm., And / or hormone receptor positive.

These drugs are given by way of cycles, with a recovery period between each.

The total duration of treatment varies depending on the patient required chemotherapy but ranges from three to six months.

Side effects of chemotherapy:
Because they are very strong drugs, have few side effects in some cases, very unpleasant. It must be said that are given, along with them, other drugs that reduce some of these effects. The most common are:

- Nausea and vomiting (Read more).
- Loss of appetite.
- Loss of hair.
- Mouth sores.
- Fatigue.
- High risk of infection by the decrease in white blood cells.
- Changes in the menstrual cycle.
- Hematomas.

Chemotherapy as treatment for relapse (when the cancer recurs in the other breast or other organ) is administered in the manner described above, except that the dose must be appropriate to stage of cancer.

Alongside chemotherapy, hormonal therapy will be provided that the present tumor hormone receptors.

Hormone therapy involves the administration of drugs that block the action of hormones that stimulate the growth of cancer cells.

They are given to those patients who are hormone receptor positive, this comes to be 60-70% of patients diagnosed with breast cancer.

Years ago after ovariectomy was performed to prevent the action of hormones but, at present, this technique is not used and instead used hormone therapy.

Recently, new drugs are being used for this therapy, which are:
- Drug antiestrogens or estrogen receptor modulators.
- Luteinizing hormone agonists at the level of the pituitary gland, which is responsible for estrogen production in premenopausal women.
- Drugs of aromatase, an enzyme that produces estrogen in women whose ovaries no longer produce them, ie, in menopausal women.
- Drug type of progesterone.

Side effects of these drugs are similar to symptoms that occur at menopause, ie hot flashes, nervousness, and so on. In some postmenopausal women have seen other risks such as increased thrombophlebitis, etc..

These drugs have several routes of administration that will be chosen according to a decision by the physician and patient. These routes are oral, subcutaneous and intramuscular (via injection).

The surgery will be done after obtaining the biopsy result. With it, is to achieve total tumor removal. Depending on this, the surgery will be more or less complicated.

The breast-conserving surgery is to remove the tumor trying to preserve as much breast tissue intact. Depending on the size of the tumor have the following types of surgery:

Lumpectomy: removal of the tumor with a rim of normal tissue.

Partial mastectomy or wide excision: Removal of the tumor along with a larger amount of normal tissue.

Quadrantectomy: removal of one quarter of the breast. These types of surgery will be performed in cases where the tumor is small, about 15% of cases, the amount of tissue that is removed is so small that it does not show much difference between the operated breast and non has been. Survival rates among women who have been implanted with conservative surgery and it was removed the entire breast to a are identical. These are the options of surgery:

Simple mastectomy: it removes the entire breast tissue but leaves the underlying muscle intact and enough skin to cover the wound. The breast is reconstructed more easily if the pectoral muscles and other tissues that are below it are unaffected. This technique is used when the cancer is invasive and has spread within the breast ducts.

Modified radical mastectomy removes the entire breast, axillary nodes some of the same arm of the breast and a small section of pectoralis ..

Radical mastectomy removes the tumor and the breast, underlying pectoral muscles and axillary nodes.

Sentinel lymph node biopsy: During surgery, inject a dye or a radioactive substance into the tumor site. The substance is transported by the lymph and if captured by the first node, which is one that can contain as many cancer cells, more nodes are removed. If it contains no malignant cells are not removed others. Chances of survival are greater if not affected axillary nodes. This biopsy is not performed if the tumor is very localized and very small, but if not, is done to try to prevent problems that may occur to remove lymph nodes.

Lymphedema: is a complication that occurs in one or two women out of 10 audited. This complication is swelling, stiffness or pain and loss of mobility in the arm after lymph node removal. The woman, once operated, you should avoid gaining any weight with that arm and perform strenuous exercise. The treatment for this problem is through massage or compression bandages. It is making a new technique, which is under study, which involves liposuction to remove fat that is stored in the arm.

Breast reconstruction: in general, to reconstruct a breast, a woman has to pass twice by surgery, a mastectomy and one for the implantation of the prosthesis. Generally not usually done at a time because it would need to be a long time under anesthesia and prefer to do this in two different interventions. There is no inconvenience for the patient to intervene when she sees fit. The implant is usually silicone or saline. Not all women who have undergone a radical mastectomy, wants to perform implant. Spending again for an operating room to undergo surgery with anesthesia and subsequent recovery, some choose to make the artificial limbs.

Tags: Adjuvant chemotherapy, Breast Cancer Treatment, Chemotherapy, Radiotherapy, Side effects of chemotherapy, Treatment of Breast Cancer