Breast Cancer
Breast Cancer, malignant tumor in the glandular tissues of the breast. Such tumors, also called carcinomas, form when the processes that control normal cell growth break down, enabling a single abnormal cell to multiply at a rapid rate. Carcinomas, which tend to destroy an increasing proportion of normal breast tissue over time, may spread, or metastasize, to other parts of the body.
Scientists do not understand exactly what causes breast cancer. Studies suggest that several categories of women are at increased risk for the disease: those with a long menstrual history (menstrual periods that started before age 12 and ended after age 50); those who never gave birth or who waited until after age 30 to have children; and those who have used birth control pills or hormone replacement therapy. Such risk factors, all of which relate to hormone-based life events, suggest that breast cancer is somehow affected by prolonged exposure to female sex hormones, such as estrogen.
X-ray examination of the breasts, a technique called mammography, can increase the odds for successful treatment by detecting tumors in an early stage, before they are large enough to be felt. Although studies provide conflicting results about the effectiveness of mammography in reducing breast cancer deaths, it is recommended that women over age 40 should have a mammogram every year. A mammogram cannot distinguish a benign tumor from a malignant tumor. The only way to make a positive diagnosis on a suspect lump in the breast is by having a biopsy, a minor surgical procedure in which the lump or part of the lump is removed and examined under a microscope for cancer cells.
Treatment of breast cancer depends on a woman’s age and health as well as the type, extent, and location of the tumor, and if the cancer has remained in the breast or has spread to other parts of the body. Treatment may include surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, or a combination of treatments.
Scientists do not understand exactly what causes breast cancer. Studies suggest that several categories of women are at increased risk for the disease: those with a long menstrual history (menstrual periods that started before age 12 and ended after age 50); those who never gave birth or who waited until after age 30 to have children; and those who have used birth control pills or hormone replacement therapy. Such risk factors, all of which relate to hormone-based life events, suggest that breast cancer is somehow affected by prolonged exposure to female sex hormones, such as estrogen.
X-ray examination of the breasts, a technique called mammography, can increase the odds for successful treatment by detecting tumors in an early stage, before they are large enough to be felt. Although studies provide conflicting results about the effectiveness of mammography in reducing breast cancer deaths, it is recommended that women over age 40 should have a mammogram every year. A mammogram cannot distinguish a benign tumor from a malignant tumor. The only way to make a positive diagnosis on a suspect lump in the breast is by having a biopsy, a minor surgical procedure in which the lump or part of the lump is removed and examined under a microscope for cancer cells.
Treatment of breast cancer depends on a woman’s age and health as well as the type, extent, and location of the tumor, and if the cancer has remained in the breast or has spread to other parts of the body. Treatment may include surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, or a combination of treatments.