Breast Cancer : In Depth - Prevention an...
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You have a better chance of surviving breast cancer if your doctor finds and treats it early. The best way to detect breast cancer early is to be screened regularly. This isn't possible for many cancers, but it is with breast cancer. Screening, however, doesn't guarantee that you won't get cancer or die from it, especially if it's found after symptoms develop.
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Certain well-respected organizations have varying advice about the methods of breast cancer screening and how often you should be screened. Here's what two of these groups recommend for those with an average risk of getting breast cancer.
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1. Stand before a mirror. Inspect both breasts for anything unusual such as any discharge from the nipples or puckering, dimpling, or scaling of the skin.
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Breast cancer often causes no symptoms in its early stages. Women with early breast cancer usually do not feel pain or experience any symptoms at all. Screening tests are better able to detect the disease at this time. As the cancer grows, however, it can cause the following changes.
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NATIONAL MAMMOGRAPHY DAY The third Friday in October each year is National Mammography Day, first proclaimed by President Clinton in 1993. On this day, or throughout the month, we encourage women to make a mammography appointment.
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Your breasts change throughout your life. But monthly breast self-exams can help you learn what is normal for you. That way, you are more likely to notice any unusual changes. Try to check your breasts one week after your period each month. If you don't have periods, aim for the first of each month.
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You may have just found a lump in your breast. Or your healthcare provider may have seen one on a mammogram (breast x-ray). If so, you are likely to have many questions and concerns. It's normal to worry. But the welcome news is that most breast lumps are not due to cancer, and they often need little or no treatment. Read on to help you learn more.
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Janie Pfefferkorn knows all too well the value of having a mammogram. She believes the procedure saved her life.
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A mammogram that is a digital image is just as effective at finding breast cancer as one done traditionally with X-rays, which is called analog mammography.
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1. What are BRCA1 and BRCA2? Each year, more than 192,000 American women learn they have breast cancer. Approximately 5 to 10 percent of these women have a hereditary form of the disease. Changes, called alterations or mutations, in certain genes make some women more susceptible to developing breast and other types of cancer. Inherited alterations in the genes called BRCA1 and BRCA2 (short for breast cancer 1 and breast cancer 2) are involved in many cases of hereditary breast and ovarian cancer. Researchers are searching for other genes that may also increase a woman's cancer risk.
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Cancer is a disease of the genes. Most cancers develop as a result of genetic damage we sustain over a lifetime. These are called "sporadic" cancers. The risk of developing cancer is higher in those who are born with certain genetic defects. These defects occur in areas of the DNA that affect cell division, cell death, and the repair of damaged DNA. Cancers that result from DNA damage are called "hereditary" cancers. They account for about 5 to 10% of all breast cancer cases. The likelihood of breast cancer being hereditary is influenced by your age at the time of diagnosis. The younger you are, the more likely the cancer is hereditary.
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Many experts believe that mammograms save lives. Since the widespread introduction of mammography to screen for breast cancer in the mid-1980s, the number of women ages 50 and older getting mammograms has more than doubled. Pair that figure with a drop in breast cancer deaths by almost 2% each year since 1992.
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Key Points The Study of Tamoxifen and Raloxifene (STAR) is a clinical trial designed to see how the drug raloxifene (Evista®) compares with the drug tamoxifen (Nolvadex®) in reducing the incidence of breast cancer in women who are at an increased risk for developing the disease (see Question 1).
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The National Cancer Institute (NCI) is funding numerous research projects to improve conventional mammography (an x-ray technique to visualize the internal structure of the breast) and develop other imaging technologies to detect, diagnose, and characterize breast tumors.
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There is a debate raging that has respected nutrition experts on both sides of the battle lines. The topic is the role of soy in breast cancer. Does soy prevent breast cancer or promote it? Does soy have different effects in different people? Unfortunately, there are simply no clear-cut answers yet.
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When you've been diagnosed with cancer--particularly lung cancer--it may be hard to think or talk about quitting smoking. Why? Because you smoke even though everybody knows that smoking is bad for your health. And everyone knows that it can cause cancer. Plus, we also know that quitting is hard.
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