Breast Cancer Causes – Treatments

Last Updated on Tuesday, 27 October 2009 01:45 Written by Natural Health Team Tuesday, 27 October 2009 01:45

Breast Cancer

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 factor

Breast cancer is a cancer that starts in the cells of the breast in men and women. Worldwide, breast cancer is the second most common type of cancer after lung cancer (10.4% of all cancer incidence, both sexes counted) and the fifth most common cause of cancer death.

Breast Cancer Causes

In breast cancer, some of the cells in your breast begin growing abnormally. These cells divide more rapidly than healthy cells do and may spread (metastasize) through your breast, to your lymph nodes or to other parts of your body

Women who start their periods early (early puberty) or have a late menopause have a slightly higher risk of breast cancer.

Women who are taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT), or have recently taken it, have a slightly increased risk of breast cancer. Detailed information about HRT.

Although the precise causes of breast cancer are unclear, we know what the main risk factors are. Still, most women considered at high risk for breast cancer do not get it, while many who do have no known risk factors.

Breast Cancer symptoms

Breast lumps in general

The first symptom of breast cancer for many women is a lump in their breast. But 9 out of 10 breast lumps (90%) are benign. That means they are not cancers. Most benign breast lumps are not cancers.

A lump or a thickening in the breast or in the armpit: Some lumps or swelling in the breast tissue may be due to hormonal changes. But if a lump or thickening persists, whether it is in the breast or in the armpit area, it may be a cause for concern.

Fluid (not milk) leaking from the nipple: Between ages 41 – 58, there may be a small bit of non-bloody leakage from the nipples of both breasts. This leakage is usually due to hormonal changes and is not worrisome.

Treatments of Breast Cancer

Surgery

Breast-conserving surgery (lumpectomy), mastectomy, and lymph node dissection, and what to expect from each.

Building Long-Term Health

Why it’s so important to stick to your treatment plan, take the full course of medications, and continue with regular tests and doctors’ visits to keep yourself healthy into the future.

Tests on your cancer cells

Your breast cancer cells can be tested to see if they have hormone receptors’ or biological therapy receptors. There are oestrogen receptors and progesterone receptors.

Simple mastectomy. During a simple mastectomy, your surgeon removes all your breast tissue – the lobules, ducts, fatty tissue and skin, including the nipple and areola.

Reconstruction with a tissue flap. Known as a transverse rectus abdominal muscle (TRAM) flap, this surgery reconstructs your breast using tissue, including fat and muscle, from your abdomen, although surgeons.

Breast Cancer

Breast Cancer: What Every Woman Needs to Know

Last Updated on Wednesday, 21 October 2009 01:43 Written by Natural Health Team Wednesday, 21 October 2009 01:43

Reports say that after lung cancer, breast cancer is the second most deadly and common type of cancer, which accounts for 1% of all deaths and 7% of all cancer deaths. Breast cancer is considered to the fifth common cause responsible for cancer deaths.

Symptoms of Breast Cancer

As a woman, you should be well aware of breast cancer, its symptoms and treatment. According to doctors, the subjective and first symptom of breast cancer is a development of a typical lump in your breast. This lump is quite different from the breast tissue surrounding it and you can notice it by careful examination.

But, breast cancer is not only determined by the lump, which appears in your breast. Studies reveal that if you are having lumps located in the lymph nodes in your collar bone or armpits, you are more likely to have breast cancer. It is the mammogram, which is done by doctors in the region of the detected lump to confirm the case of breast cancer.

But all women don’t develop the same symptoms of breast cancer. Other indications of breast cancer apart from a lump include nipple inversion, skin dimpling, spontaneous single nipple discharge or change in the shape and size of the breast. If you are having pain in your breast, don’t take it as breast cancer as it is an unreliable tool for confirming the menace.

After the invasion of the breast cancer cells in the region of dermal lymphatics, you are more likely to get skin inflammation in your breast. This phenomenon is often termed as inflammatory breast cancer (IBC). Women, having inflammatory breast cancer, may develop several symptoms, which include an orange peel appearance of the skin in the breast of region, redness and warmth in the breast with extreme pain and swelling. Other symptoms indicating the presence of breast cancer in your body is increased sensitivity, burning, itching and tingling of the breast region.

Look For Immediate Attention from Your Doctor

Women developing the above symptoms of breast cancer should immediately contact their doctor. Cases of breast cancer can be diagnosed with proper examination of surgically removed tissue from the breast. Procedures of removing tissues include local surgical excision, core needle biopsy, ductal cleavage, fine needle aspiration and nipple aspirates. After this, some imaging tests such as bone scan, chest X-ray, PET scanning and MRI are conducted to confirm breast cancer.

Therapies for Treating Breast Cancer

With the advancement of medical studies, women may not worry any more, if they are having breast cancer. Surgery is the mainstay of the treatment of breast cancer, where the tumour in the breast is localised followed by adjuvant hormonal therapies in that region. Some other popular treatment methods of breast cancer are chemotherapy, immune therapy, radiation therapy and hormone therapy.

One more innovative and modern method of treating breast cancer is Interstitial Laser Thermotherapy (ILT). It is a minimal invasive process and there is absolutely no need for surgical removal of the breast tissue. Doctors also recommend this treatment, as no side effects are noticed in this process and the patient remains healthy.

Breast Cancer

Get to Know How Prostate Cancer Radiation Treatment Works

Last Updated on Tuesday, 20 October 2009 10:32 Written by Natural Health Team Tuesday, 20 October 2009 10:32

Prostate cancer is deadly to men over fifty, and is often so slow to really develop that it’s not noticed until it’s too late to remove by normal surgery. Although prostate cancer can be prevented by normal routine checkups and a healthy low-stress lifestyle, it’s still possible for any male to develop prostate cancer. Because of this, prostate cancer radiation treatment is one of the most common methods of treating prostate cancer, and it’s effective for the most part. However, it isn’t perfect. Before getting prostate cancer radiation treatment, it’s best to know how the treatment works.

The Alternative to Prostate Cancer Surgery

Prostate cancer radiation treatment is also called radiotherapy or chemotherapy, and is used when surgery fails or during any stage of the cancer. This works by sending a wave of ionized radioactive particles. This radiation is absorbed into cells, which mutates the DNA and increases the likelihood of that cell dying. There are two main types of prostate cancer radiation treatment – beam therapy and brachytherapy. Radiation treatment is the most commonly used method for treating prostate cancer aside from surgery.

Beam therapy is done by placing the patient into a linear accelerator to send beams of radioactive particles firing directly at the prostate. The latest techniques enable the beam to match the shape of the prostate so that other tissue isn’t damaged. Usually, beam therapy is done over a period of several weeks daily. There are fewer side effects with newer forms of prostate cancer radiation therapy, however.

Brachytherapy, however, is done by infusing a series of small rods with radiation and inserting them into the cancerous tissue. These rods act as a permanent emitter of low-grade radiation. The X-rays are only able to travel a short distance, so there’s little chance of damage to the other surrounding tissues of the body. This treatment tends to have a better outcome as far as preventing recurring cancer. Also, there’s little chance of the radiation being exposed to other men.

Prostate cancer radiation treatment is most commonly used in men who wouldn’t really be able to have surgery safely. Prostate cancer radiation treatment is one of the most effective methods of treatment for prostate cancer, but there are some side effects, such as hair loss, sickness and overall loss of energy.

Although prostate cancer is a very deadly disease, it can be easily dealt with if it’s caught on time with regularly scheduled checkups and a healthy lifestyle

Prostate Cancer

Do You Know That Male Could Develop Breast Cancer?

Last Updated on Friday, 16 October 2009 01:43 Written by Natural Health Team Friday, 16 October 2009 01:43

Breast cancer is automatically associated with women. There is good reason for this, as it is much more common for women to be diagnosed with breast cancer than men. However, breast cancer in men does exist even though it is quite rare. It is reported that only 1 percent of the people suffering from breast cancer are actually men. The main reason why people do not think that male breast cancer actually exists is because men don’t have breasts. However, they do have breast tissue. This breast tissue in men normally stays small and flat. Some men develop what look like medium or large breasts. In actual fact, this is just fat collection as the man will more than likely be unfit and overweight. Some men do also grow actual breasts as a result of medication or unusually high hormone levels within the body. There are a few factors to consider when looking at male breast cancer. Those factors are as follows and may vary from person to person. It is important to remember when looking at the factors that because the chance of getting breast cancer in males is low, there haven’t been a lot of studies looking into male breast cancer. * Aging – Getting older can be just a bigger factor as it is for women developing breast cancer. The usual age when men are diagnosed with breast cancer is around the mid 60’s. * Higher estrogens levels than normal can be a factor for men developing breast cancer. If a man is taking hormone medication for some reason, he may begin to develop breasts. As a result, he may be more at risk of developing breast cancer. * Being obese or overweight increases the body’s production of estrogens levels within a male. This then makes them more at risk of getting breast cancer. * It can be genetically passed on from male to male in the family. If there is a history of breast cancer within other males in the same family, there is much more chance of developing it later on in life. * If the male has had radiation treatment to treat such diseases like Hodgkin’s disease can increase a man risk of getting breast cancer. This is especially true if the radiation treatment was given to the patient before they turned thirty years of age. Symptoms in male breast cancer are not unlike what women get when they develop breast cancer. While breast cancer in men is still fairly uncommon, it does seem to be on the rise. This could be contributed to the growing problem of people’s waistlines all across the world. Men developing male breast cancer may experience a lump or bump in the breast, underarm or collarbone area, painful nipples, discharging nipples, inverted nipples and sores around the nipple area. Just because men sometimes develop breasts, doesn’t necessarily mean that they will go on to develop breast cancer.

Breast+Cancer