Speech

BREAST CANCER

v  What is breast cancer?

Breast cancer is an uncontrolled growth of breast cells. Cancer occurs as a result of mutations, or abnormal changes, in the genes responsible for regulating the growth of cells and keeping them healthy. The genes are in each cell’s nucleus, which acts as the “control room” of each cell. Normally, the cells in our bodies replace themselves through an orderly process of cell growth: healthy new cells take over as old ones die out. But over time, mutations can “turn on” certain genes and “turn off” others in a cell. That changed cell gains the ability to keep dividing without control or order, producing more cells just like it and forming a tumor.

The term “breast cancer” refers to a malignant tumor that has developed from cells in the breast. Usually breast cancer either begins in the cells of the lobules, which are the milk-producing glands, or the ducts, the passages that drain milk from the lobules to the nipple.

Over time, cancer cells can invade nearby healthy breast tissue and make their way into the underarm lymph nodes, small organs that filter out foreign substances in the body. If cancer cells get into the lymph nodes, they then have a pathway into other parts of the body. The breast cancer’s stage refers to how far the cancer cells have spread beyond the original tumor.

Breast cancer is always caused by a genetic abnormality (a “mistake” in the genetic material). However, only 5-10% of cancers are due to an abnormality inherited from your mother or father. About 90% of breast cancers are due to genetic abnormalities that happen as a result of the aging process.

v  Breast Cancer Risk Factors

There are two kinds of breast cancer risk factor :

1.      Risk factors you can control.

a.       Weight.

b.      Diet. 

c.       Exercise.

d.      Alcohol consumption.

e.       Smoking.

f.       Stress and anxiety.

2.       Risk factors you can’t control.

a.       Gender.

b.      Age.

c.       Family history of breast cancer.

d.      Personal history of breast cancer.

e.       Race.

f.       Radiation therapy to the chest.

g.      Breast cellular changes.

h.      Exposure to estrogen. Because the female hormone estrogen stimulates breast cell growth, exposure to estrogen over long periods of time, without any breaks, can increase the risk of breast cancer.

i.        Pregnancy and breastfeeding.  For women who do have children, breastfeeding may slightly lower their breast cancer risk, especially if they continue breastfeeding for 1 1/2 to 2 years. For many women, however, breastfeeding for this long is neither possible nor practical.

v  Symthom of Breast Cancer

According to the American Cancer Society, any of the following unusual changes in the breast can be a symptom of breast cancer:

·         swelling of all or part of the breast

·         skin irritation or dimpling

·         breast pain

·         nipple pain or the nipple turning inward

·         redness, scaliness, or thickening of the nipple or breast skin

·         a nipple discharge other than breast milk

·         a lump in the underarm area

These changes also can be signs of less serious conditions that are not cancerous, such as an infection or a cyst. It’s important to get any breast changes checked out promptly by a doctor.

v  How to recover Breast Cancer

1.      Mastectomy

a.       Modified Radical Mastectomy.

b.      Total(simple) Mastectomy.

c.       Lumpectomy.

2.      Radiation Therapy.

3.      Chemotherapy.