Breast cancer awareness

Cancer is a disease which occurs when changes in a group of normal cells within the body lead to uncontrolled, abnormal growth forming a lump called a tumour. If left untreated, tumours can grow and spread into the surrounding normal tissue, or to other parts of the body via the bloodstream and lymphatic systems.

Breast cancer is cancer that forms in the cells of the breasts. Breast cancer can occur in both men and women, but it is far more common in women. Breast cancer survival rates have increased, and the number of deaths associated with this disease is steadily declining, largely due to factors such as earlier detection, a new personalised approach to treatment and a better understanding of the disease.

Causes:

Cancers can be caused by several different factors and, as with many other illnesses, most cancers are the result of exposure to various different causal factors. It is important to remember that, while some factors cannot be modified, around one third of cancer cases can be prevented by reducing behavioural and dietary risks.

Modifiable risk factors include:

• Alcohol. The evidence suggests that in general, the more alcohol drinks people consume the higher the risk of many cancers, and that even moderate alcohol intake increases the risk of cancer.
• Being overweight or obese. In general, greater weight gain, particularly as adults, is associated with greater cancer risks.
• Diet and nutrition. Experts suggest that diets and nutritional intake, particularly diets high in red meats, processed meats, salted foods and low in fruits and vegetables have an impact on cancer risks.
• Physical activity. Regular physical activity not only helps to reduce excess body fat and the cancer risks associated with this.
• Tobacco smoke contains at least 80 different cancer-causing substances (carcinogenic agents).
• Ionising radiation. Manmade sources of radiation can cause cancer and are a risk for workers. Prolonged and unprotected exposure to ultraviolet radiations from the sun, sunlamps and tanning beds can also lead to melanoma and skin malignancies.
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• Workplace hazards. Some people risk being exposed to a cancer-causing substance because of the work that they do.
• Infection. This does not mean that these cancers can be caught like an infection; rather the virus can cause changes in cells that make them more likely to become cancerous.
• Beginning your period at a younger age, before age 12 increases your risk of breast cancer.
• Beginning menopause at an older age. If you began menopause at an older age, you are more likely to develop breast cancer.
• Women who give birth to their first child after age 30 may have an increased risk of breast cancer.
• Women who have never been pregnant have a greater risk of breast cancer than do women who have had one or more pregnancies.
• Postmenopausal hormone therapy. Women who take hormone therapy medications that combine estrogen and progesterone to treat the signs and symptoms of menopause have an increased risk of breast cancer. The risk of breast cancer decreases when women stop taking these medications.
  Non-modifiable risk factors include:
• Age. The longer people live, the more exposure there is to carcinogens and the more time there is for genetic changes or mutations to occur within their cells.
• Cancer-causing substances (carcinogens). These are substances which change how a cell behaves, increasing the chances of developing cancer.
• Genetics. Some people are unfortunately born with a genetically inherited high risk for a specific cancer (genetic predisposition). This does not mean developing cancer is guaranteed, but a genetic predisposition makes the disease more likely.
• The immune system. People who have weakened immune systems are more at risk of developing some types of cancer. This includes people who have had organ transplants and take drugs to suppress their immune systems to stop organ rejection, plus people who have HIV or AIDS, or other medical conditions which reduce their immunity to disease.

Signs and symptoms of breast cancer may include:

• A breast lump or thickening that feels different from the surrounding tissue.
• Change in the size, shape or appearance of a breast.
• Changes to the skin over the breast, such as dimpling.
• A newly inverted nipple.
• Peeling, scaling, crusting or flaking of the pigmented area of skin surrounding the nipple (areola) or breast skin.
• Redness or pitting of the skin over your breast, like the skin of an orange.

When to see a doctor:

If you find a lump or other change in your breast even if a recent mammogram was normal, make an appointment with your doctor for prompt evaluation.

Prevention (Always better than cure!):

• Breast self-examination. Become familiar with your breasts through breast self-exam for breast awareness. If there is a new change, lumps, or other unusual signs in your breasts, talk to your doctor promptly.
• Discuss with your doctor when to begin breast cancer screening exams and tests, such as clinical breast exams and mammograms.
• Drink alcohol in moderation, if at all.
• Exercise most days of the week. Aim for at least 30 minutes of exercise on most days of the week.
• Limit postmenopausal hormone therapy. Talk with your doctor about the benefits and risks of hormone therapy.
• Maintain a healthy weight.
• Choose a healthy diet. People who eat a Mediterranean diet supplemented with extra-virgin olive oil and mixed nuts may have a reduced risk of breast cancer. The Mediterranean diet focuses mostly on plant-based foods, such as fruits and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, and nuts.

Early detection of cancer:

There are several cancers which can be identified early which helps to improve the chances of successful treatment outcomes, often at lower costs and with fewer (or less significant) side effects for patients.

There are cost-effective tests that help detect colorectal, breast, cervical and oral cancers early and further tests are being developed for other cancers.

How is breast cancer diagnosed:

Sometimes, a person may discover a lump or notice changes in the breast. A doctor will perform a physical exam to look for breast changes.

Tests used to confirm a diagnosis of breast cancer include:

• Mammogram (a special type of X-ray).
• Breast ultrasound.
• Breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
• Biopsy, in which samples of tissue from the breast are removed and examined.

Managing and treating cancer:

The treatment depends on the type of cancer, where the cancer is, how big it is, whether it has spread, and the persons general health.

The general types of treatments include:

• Surgery – If a cancer has not metastasized (spread), surgery can remove the entire cancer which may completely cure the disease.
• Radiotherapy – Radiation treatment or radiotherapy uses high-energy rays to reduce a tumour or destroy cancer cells as a stand-alone treatment and in some cases in combination with other cancer treatments.
• Chemotherapy – uses chemicals to interfere with the way cells divide – damaging of DNA – so that cancer cells will destroy themselves. These treatments target any rapidly dividing cells (not necessarily just cancer cells), but normal cells usually can recover from any chemical-induced damage while cancer cells cannot. Chemotherapy is generally used to treat cancer that has spread or metastasized because the medicines travel throughout the entire body.
• Immunotherapy uses the body’s own immune system to fight the cancer tumour. Immunotherapy may treat the whole body by giving an agent that can shrink tumours.
• Hormone therapy – Several cancers have been linked to some types of hormones, including breast and prostate cancer. Hormone therapy works to change hormone production in the body so that cancer cells stop growing or are killed completely.
• Gene therapy – The goal of gene therapy is to replace damaged genes with ones that work to address a root cause of cancer: damage to DNA. Other gene-based therapies focus on further damaging cancer cell DNA to the point where the cell destroys themselves. This is still very new and highly specialized. Not much data is yet available on its effectiveness.