Breast Cancer Detection, Treatments and Prevention

Breast cancer is the number one disease that women in the United States fear the most, and for compelling reasons. According to the American Cancer Society, this year about 175,000 new cases of invasive breast cancer and about 43,300 deaths from breast cancer will occur among women in the USA.Breast cancer is a rapid, uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in one or both breasts. Researchers have identified lots of risk factors (such as age, diet, cigarette smoking, alcohol intake, and family history), but the specific causes of breast cancer remain elusive.There are five main stages of breast cancer. If breast cancer is detected in its early stages, the 5 year survival rate is greater than 95%.Breast cancer is more easily treated and often curable if it is found early. Monthly breast self-examinations should begin at age 20. Recommended screening methods include breast self-examination and mammography. Treatment for breast cancer usually depends on the type of cancer and whether the cancer has spread outside of the breast to the rest of the body. Treatment options include surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, and endocrine/anti-hormone therapy. It's very important to diagnose inflammatory breast cancer quickly so that treatment can begin. After surgery, radiation treatment is used to try to kill any remaining cancer cells.Possible surgical treatments are either a mastectomy (complete removal of the breast) or breast conserving therapy. Even if a mastectomy is needed (about 30-40% of patients need this), building a new breast, called reconstruction, offers a natural looking breast replacement. Breast-conserving surgery (which removes only some of your breast) often works just as well as a mastectomy (which removes all of your breast).Mammograms can detect tumors in the earliest stages, however, a standard mammogram can miss 15-20% of cancerous tumors. Heightened awareness of breast cancer risk in the past decades has led to an increase in the number of women undergoing mammography for screening, leading to detection of cancers in earlier stages and a resultant improvement in survival rates.Research suggests that routine exercise may help prevent breast cancer. Up to 10 percent of breast cancer patients eventually suffer a recurrence in the other breast. The cause of breast cancer is unknown. Early detection of breast cancer is therefore vital as it increases the chances of successful treatment. The chance of a woman in her 40s developing breast cancer is about one in 70, whereas the risk of a woman in her 80s developing breast cancer is one in 25. When breast cancer is confined to the breast the five year survival rate is over 95%. For women aged 40-49, the evidence that screening mammography reduces mortality from breast cancer is weaker, and the absolute benefit of mammography is smaller, than it is for older women.The good news is that breast cancer is a disease that can be treated and cured. More than 90 out of 100 women whose breast cancer is found early will be cured. While there is still no cure for the disease, the experts and leading organizations such as the American Cancer Society, Susan G. Doctors and scientists are working on finding cures for all types of breast cancer. Finding and treating breast cancer early is the best way to increase your chances of survival and cure.

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