Although surgery is the most effective (and therefore the most widely used) breast cancer treatment method, there are several other ways of coping with the disease, some are more powerful than others. They include radiation therapy, chemotherapy or hormone therapy, each with its own assets and disadvantages.

Most of them, however, are used in combination with surgery for best effects, either prior to, in order to reduce the size of the tumor or after surgery, to remove any remaining cancer cells. For a better understanding of these alternative methods of treatment for breast cancer, let's take a closer look at each one, explaining how and in what cases might be helpful.

Radiation therapy
Radiation therapy uses powerful gamma rays (X-rays) which target the specific area that needs to be treated with great precision. Generally, radiation therapy is done after surgery to destroy any cancer cells that have not been withdrawn or which formed until the tumor was removed. Although it can not be used as a treatment on their own, radiation therapy is one of the most widely accepted after surgery for breast conservation methods of therapy (BCT) and has a high possibility of stopping cancer again happen.

As with all treatments involving X-rays, there are some disadvantages to the radiation therapy. First, in order to eliminate cancer cells that may have formed (or remains) in the area where the tumor was removed from the X-rays may damage some of the healthy tissues as well. Although the process is very precise, the rays can not make a difference between cancerous and normal cells, so oeburn "together.

Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy consists of the administration of drugs that kill cancer cells or prevent them from growing. Most of the chemotherapy drugs are given through an intravenous line, although some are administered in pill form. Chemotherapy is a harsh regime, which often makes people feel more patients who are suffering from the disease, however, has proved very effective.

Chemotherapy is a treatment method to use both before and after surgery. With the help of this method, you can virtually contract the cancerous tumor prior to surgery, making it easier and less complex to eliminate. In addition, chemotherapy is used in the same sense as radiation therapy after surgery, to stop the diseased cells to recur.

Chemotherapy is usually administered in cycles, where each cycle consists of a period of intensive treatment that lasts a few days or weeks, followed a week of recovery. Most patients with breast cancer are two to four cycles of chemotherapy to start before tests are performed to see what effect it has had on cancer.

Chemotherapy is different to radiation because it can treat the entire body with the possibility of finding other tumor cells that have migrated from the breast and surrounding area. Many people are familiar with chemotherapy side effects, but the side effects do not depend on drugs to treat the patient.

The most common side effects are loss of hair, loss of appetite, fatigue, vomiting and low blood cells of the patient more susceptible to infections, feeling sick or tired. Many ads that bleed more than normal, especially the gums, sores and small Scrapes etc.

There are three different strategies are used in chemotherapy for breast cancer:

Adjuvant chemotherapy, "this is given to patients who have undergone curative treatment for breast cancer, such as radiation or surgery. To reduce the possibility of the recurrence of breast cancer, this treatment is given.

Pre-surgical chemotherapy "is to reduce the possibility of a large tumor and / or kill any stray cancer cells. This will also increase the possibility that the surgery will kill the cancer completely.

Regular chemotherapy, "this is usually the people who have breast cancer that has spread beyond the breast or the environment local area.

Hormone therapy may also occur, as many breast cancers, such as those having a broad estrogen or progesterone receptors are sensitive to changes in hormones.

Tamoxifen treatment of breast cancer
Women who are genetically at high risk of developing breast cancer may benefit from tamoxifen as it has previously been seen in reducing the incidence of the disease. Raloxifene, used to treat osteoporosis, is being studied for the treatment of breast cancer.

In some cases of breast cancer, a woman of natural hormones are suppressed with drugs, while other patients find benefits by adding hormones. Tamoxifen, for example, is currently the most commonly prescribed effective hormone treatment. It can be used to treat breast cancer and the prevention of breast cancer. Tamoxifen has few side effects and can significantly improve the lives of women who have advanced cases of breast cancer.

Fulvestrant treatment of breast cancer
Another treatment, Fulvestrant has recently been approved in the U.S.. It is planned to be used for the treatment of hormone receptor positive metastastic breast cancer in women who have been through menopause. Is given following antiestrogen therapy.

Monoclonal breast cancer treatment
Another treatment known as monoclonal antibodies is that they are antagonistic against the proteins, which are in or around the cancer cells. They recognize an invader like a cancer cell and attack him. This antibody therapy is currently being investigated has a lot of hope for those suffering from breast cancer.

Excessive intake of alcohol and obesity after menopause may increase the risk of developing breast cancer, although this increase is slight. Such women are physically active have a lower risk.

Preventive or prophylactic mastectomies
More and more women who are at high risk of developing breast cancer are taking preventive or prophylactic mastectomies to avoid developing breast cancer.

The main risk factors for women to develop breast cancer are age, sex and genetics. The woman can not do anything about some risks in order to prevent death due to breast cancer is recommended with newspapers.

Women should carry out regular screening, including self-examination, mammography and clinical breast exam.



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If a person had already had breast cancer, the chances of recurrence is very high.

A family history of the condition indicates a higher risk of the person developing breast cancer.

A person who is above the age of thirty is subjected to the risk of developing breast cancer more.

African American women are more subjected to the early diagnosis of this cancer. i. e American women have more chances of developing this cancer.

Women who begin their menstrual cycle before they are twelve years old and have their menopause around fifty five years are more subjected to this condition.

But if a woman carries her entire pregnancy at a very young age, she is less susceptible to breast cancer due to the change so of the hormones during pregnancy.

A woman who is susceptible to high levels of radiation may develop the breast cancer than those who are not susceptible.

Use of excessive quantities of alcohol can trigger breast cancer. Similarly, use of overcooked meat which causes an exposure to the heterocyclic amines can trigger breast cancer.

SYMPTOMS

The symptoms associated with breast cancer are:

1. a lump in the breast
2. blood streaked discharges from the nipples
3. selling or lumps in the armpits
4. change in shape and size of the breasts
5. the breast skin starts dimpling
6. rashes on the nipple
7. pain of the breasts
8. paining of the armpits

DIAGNOSIS

The tests which are useful to diagnose the presence of breast cancer are:

1. Blood tests fro assessing the overall health.
2. Mammogram for getting a view of the interior of the breast
3. Ultrasound scanning of the breasts, in case the breast is very dense.
4. Biopsy for confirmation
5. CT scan and MRI for detailed pictures of the interior of the body.
6. Scanning of the bones to check the spread of the cancer into the bones.

Some of the following tests help in determining the specific treatment types:

1. The hormone receptor test and
2. The HER2 test.

TREATMENT

The following options are available for the treatment of a person suffering from breast cancer:

1. SURGERY
The surgery may be a breast conserving surgery or a mastectomy. A breast conserving surgery is performed in a woman when she suffers from cancer in its initial stages. The tumour along with some tissues that surround the tumour is removed. The major aim of this type of surgery is to conserve the breast as much as possible. Mastectomy is done in cases where the entire breast including the nipple is removed. Mastectomy is performed if the infection has spread to the lymph nodes or the chest muscles.

2. CHEMOTHERAPY
Chemotherapy is performed to destroy the cancerous cells which remain even after the surgery.

3. RADIOTHERAPY
Radiotherapy is done to reduce the chances of the recurring of the cancer.

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According to the American Cancer Society statistics, breast cancer accounts for nearly one in three cancers diagnosed in American women. Breast cancer affects one in eight women during their lives. Breast cancer kills more women in the United States than any cancer except lung cancer. No one knows why some women get breast cancer, but there are a number of risk factors. The incidence of breast cancer increases dramatically after age fifty, with fifty percent of breast cancers diagnosed in women over the age of forty-five.
breast carcinoma cancer

Obese women, especially those who are post-menopausal, women who consume excessive amounts of alcohol (greater than two ounces per day) and those who smoke are at increased risk. in addition, there are two genes, BRCA1 and BRCA2 that greatly increase the risk. Another risk factor is a personal one - beginning periods before the age of 12 or going through menopause after the age of 55. Other risks include being overweight, using hormone replacement therapy, taking birth control pills, drinking alcohol, not having children, having your first child after age 35, or having dense breasts.

Men also get breast carcinoma. Each year it is estimated that approximately 1,700 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer and 450 will die. While this percentage is still small, men should also give themselves regular breast self-exams and note any changes to their physicians.

Every year, scientists and doctors worldwide make researches in order to understand better the risks and the evolution of this type of cancer and to find a cure.

For instance, a new Canadian study revealed that aspirin and ibuprofen lower the risk of women developing this type of cancer. The study shows that aspirin accounts for 13 percent less breast cancer cases among women using the drug, while ibuprofen decreases the risk of cancer developing by more than 21 percent. However, the Canadian scientists who conducted this study caution women not to start using these drugs as of yet, because they have strong side-effects. 'The results of this study just show that women who are taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) for other reasons probably have a lower risk of breast cancer,' said Bahi Takkouche, M.D., Ph.D., of the University of Santiago de Compostela in Spain, co-author of the study. In medical tests, NSAIDs have been proven to inhibit the enzyme cyclooxygenase (COX), which scientists believe plays a crucial role in producing inflammatory mediators that favor the development of mutant cells.

Moreover, according to a study published in Breast Cancer Research, regular activity such as running, heavy housework, demanding yard work, aerobics, was found to reduce a woman's breast carcinoma risk with 30 percent. The study was conducted over an 11-year period and included 32,000 women who were post-menopausal. However, the activity only protected women if they were neither overweight nor obese. Contrary to other studies, that have shown that light activity had an impact on the risk of breast cancer in the long run, this study shows that light exercise had no effect against breast-cancer.

Furthermore, a recent study has shown that women who suffer from migraines can be at an important lower risk to develop breast carcinoma. Christopher Li, MD, of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, stated that 'many of the types of migraine that most women suffer from are known to be hormonally related, and also are important in the development of breast cancer.' The lead author, Li, said that the mechanism behind this connection is not entirely known, but it has to do with fluctuations in the levels of circulating hormones. He added that migraines have a hormonal component that makes them appear most in women than in men.

The women who take oral contraceptives are more likely to suffer from headaches too. This study was made on 3,412 postmenopausal women aged between 55 and 79 years old. 1,938 were women already diagnosed with breast cancer and 1,474 women without breast cancer. According to the study, the women who reported a clinical diagnosis of migraine had a 33 percent reduced risk of invasive ductal carcinoma and a 32 percent reduced risk of invasive lobular carcinoma compared with women with no history of migraine.


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