ALTERNATIVE THERAPRIES SERIES :31 BREAST CANCER

Kay Kay Healthcare Ltd.

BREAST CANCER


SYMPTOMS

In early stages, breast usually has no symptoms. As a tumor progresses, you may note the following signs:

• Swelling in the armpit.

• Pain or tenderness in the breast.

• A lump in the breast; often the first apparent symptoms of breast cancer, breast lumps are usually painless, although some may cause a prickly sensation. Lumps are usually visible on a mammogram long before they can be seen or felt.

• A noticeable flattening or indentation on the breast, which may indicate a tumor that cannot be seen or felt.

• Any change in the contour, texture, or temperature of the breast; a reddish, pitted surface like the skin of an orange is symptomatic of advance breast cancer.

• A change in the nipple, such as an indrawn or dimpled look, itching or burning sensation, or ulceration; scaling of the nipple is symptomatic of Paget’s disease, a localized cancer.

• Unusual discharge from the nipple that may be clear, bloody, or another color usually cause by benign condition but possibly due to cancer.

WHAT IS BREAST CANCER

Each month, a woman’s breast’s go through temporary changes associated with menstruation, and a lump may form. While 90 percent of these are not cancerous, any lump should be examined immediately. Lumps are most common in the lobules small sacs that produce milk or the ducts that carry milk to the nipple, but they occasionally start in non-glandular tissues. The two main categories of breast cancer are lobular and ductal carcinomas. Each has many subtypes. Breast cancer usually begins with formation of small, localized tumor. Some tumor are benign, meaning they do not invade other tissue; other are malignant, or cancerous. The potential for malignant tumor to metastasize, or spread is common to all cancer. Once such a tumor grows to a certain size, it is more likely to shed cells that spread to others part of the body through the bloodstream and lymphatic system. Different types of breast cancer grow and spread at different rates; some take years to spread beyond the breast, while other move quickly. Men can get breast cancer, but they account for less than half a percent of all cases. It is the most common cancer among women, who shares a life time risk of one in nine. It constitutes one-sixth of all U.S. cancer cases and one-third of all cancer in women. It trails only Colorectal and lung cancers as a cause of cancer death. Two of every three female’s breast cancer patients are over 50, and most of the rest are between 39 and 49. Fortunately, breast cancer is very treatable if detected early. Localized tumor can usually be treated successfully before the cancer spread; 9 cases out of 10 have a 5 years survival rate. Once the begin to spread, getting rid of it completely is more difficult, although treatment can often control the disease for years. Improved screening procedure and treatment option mean that at least 7 out of 10 women with breast cancer will survive more than 5 years after initial diagnosis, and fully half will survive more than 10 years.

CAUSES

Although the prices causes of breast cancer are unclear, we know that the main risk factors are. Still, most women consider at high risk for breast cancer do not get it, while many who do have no known risk factors. Among the most significant factors are advancing age and a family history of breast cancer. Risk increases slightly for a woman who has had a benign breast lump and increases significantly for a woman who has previously had cancer of the breast or the ovaries. A woman whose mother, sister, or daughter has had breast cancer is more likely to develop the disease, particularly if more than one so called first order relative has been affected. Researchers have now identified a gene that they think is responsible for familial breast cancer: about 1 woman in 200 carries it. Having gene predisposes a woman to breast cancer, but does not ensure that she will get it. Generally, postmenopausal women which usually means those past age 50 are more likely to get breast cancer than premenopausal women, and statistics suggest that African American woman are more likely than Caucasians to get breast cancer before menopause. A link between breast cancer and hormones is gradually becoming clearer. Researchers think that the greater woman’s exposure to the female hormone estrogen, the more susceptible she is to breast cancer. Basically, estrogen tells cells to divide; the more the cells divide, the more likely they are to be abnormal in some way possibly becoming cancerous. A woman exposure to estrogen and progesterone rises and falls during her life time, influence by the age she starts and stops menstruating before age 12, has her first child after 30, stop menstruating after 55, or has a menstrual cycle shorter or longer than the average 26 to 29 days. Taking hormones is the form of birth control pills or hormone replacement therapy may also increase risk, although the evidence is inconclusive. Heavy doses of radiation therapy may also be a factor, But low dose mammogram pose almost no risk. The diet breast cancer link is still debated. Obesity is a noteworthy risk factor, and drinking alcohol regularly may promote the disease. Many studies have shown that women whose diets are high in fat or more likely to get disease. Researchers suspect that it less than 20 percent of a woman’s daily calories come from fat, her diet may protect her from developing breast cancer.

DIAGNOSTIC AND TEST PROCEDURES

Breast cancer responds to treatment best when it is detected early. In addition to having an annual medical checkup, all women should conduct monthly breast self examinations. A baseline mammogram a low dose x-ray of the breast is recommended for women between the ages of 35 and 40. Most women should also get mammogram every other year beginning around age 40 and every year beginning at age 50. Women at risk for breast cancer should consult their doctor for the best schedule. Any risk of developing cancer from mammography is clearly offset by the benefits: breast lumps can be identified on a mammogram up to two years before they can be felt. Several tests can help distinguish a benign lump from a malignant tumor. Feeling the lump may provide clues: a benign cyst may feel like a round, slippery bean, whereas a tumor may feel thicker and may cause dimpling of the skin above it. Because malignant and benign lumps tend to have different physical futures, imaging tests such as mammography and ultrasonography can often rule out cancer. The only way to confirm cancer is to be perform needle aspiration or a biopsy and to test the tissue sample for cancer cells. In the event of malignancy, you and your doctor need to know how for along the cancer is. Various tests are used to check for the presence of likely sites of metastasis. Cancer cells can be analyzed for the presence or absence of hormone receptors, to find out if the cancer is likely to respond well to hormone therapy. Other tests can help predict the likely hood of metastasis and the potential for recurrence after treatment.

TREATMENT

If you have breast cancer, do what you can as soon as you can get rid of it. But before making treatment decisions, research your options. Ask question of your doctor, other specialists, and people who have had the disease, and seek a second option at a major cancer treatment cancer. Find doctor you trust, and don’t rush your decision. A brief delay between diagnosis and treatment will not compromise the effectiveness of treatment.

CONVENTIONAL MEDICINE

The option for treating breast cancer depend on how advance the cancer is, how old the patient is, and how healthy she is otherwise. If possible, breast cancer is treated surgically, followed usually by some combination of radiation therapy, chemotherapy, or hormone therapy. The standard surgical procedure for breast cancer was once radical mastectomy total removal of the breast and surrounding fat, muscle, and lymph nodes. For many women whose breast cancer is detected early and is still localized, lumpectomy removal of the cancerous lump and the lymph nodes under the arm is now the preferred treatment. Followed by appropriate radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and hormone therapy, lumpectomy has proved as effective as radical mastectomy for early breast cancer and is much less disfiguring. Faced with surgery, some women choose modified radical mastectomy over lumpectomy and radiation therapy. In this procedure the tumor and surrounding breast tissue are removed, but most of the muscle on chest wall is left intact which is less disfiguring than radical mastectomy. For breast cancer that has metastasize and for recurrent breast cancer, radiation therapy and chemotherapy are the primary modes of treatment, hormone therapy may also beneficial for cancer that are hormone responsive; of the estrogen suppressing drugs in use, tamoxifen is most widely used. Meanwhile, researchers are exploring treatment of breast cancer with various forms of immunotherapy; by manipulating body’s immune system, they hope to improve its natural resistance to cancer. For further information on radiation, chemotherapy, and other treatments, see Cancer.

COMPLEMENTARY THERAPIES

As with any cancer, there is no acceptable alternative to conventional medical treatment. The therapies listed should be considered preventive measure or complementary option to be pursued in conjunction with standard medical care.

LIFESTYLE

Regular aerobic exercise may offer some protection against a woman’s developing breast cancer. Studies have found that women who have exercised vigorously and often were at least half as likely as non-exercisers to get breast cancer. Exercise can also help breast cancer patients better tolerate the side effect of radiation or chemotherapy.

MIND/BODY MEDICINE

Relaxing the mind can certainly help alleviate the mental and physical stresses of cancer. Besides pursuing such individual mind/ body approaches as meditation or yoga, many people benefit from structured support group therapy. One retrospective study over 10 year of 86 women with metastatic breast cancer showed that those who participated in support group therapy and self-hypnosis while receiving conventional treatment felt better 18 months longer on average than those who got conventional care alone.

NUTRITON AND DIET

Your diet can play an important role in breast cancer prevention. In principle, dietary fats may increase your risk of developing breast cancer, and fruits, vegetables, and grains may help to reduce the risk. It’s a good idea to make whole milk dairy products, meat, and foods at high temperatures occasional treats rather than staples. You can enliven your menus by sampling different kinds of fresh fruits and vegetables and basing new dishes on whole grains and legumes. This way you are bound to get plenty of body cleansing fiber, along with vitamins and minerals thought to protect against breast cancer, specifically vitamins A,C,D, and E, and calcium, selenium, and iodine. Some doctors recommend that breast cancer patient and survivors take antioxidant supplements. Certain plant foods contain phytoestrogens, weak plant estrogen that may be particularly useful against hormone sensitive breast cancer. In theory, phytoestrogens block the uptake or normal estrogen in breast tissue. With holding estrogen may reduce the likelihood of cancer and, if malignancy exist, may reduce the rate at which cancer cells multiply. Wheat, soybeans, olives, plums, carrots, apples, yams, and coconuts are among the foods that contain phytoestogens.

AT HOME CARE

After breast surgery, a regular routine of simple exercise will help to restore your mobility and reduce muscles stiffness. To minimize potential discomfort from radiation therapy, avoid wearing a bra or clothes that may irritated the area, keep your skin clean and well aired, and use only those skin lotions, creams, and deodorants recommended by your doctor.

PEVENTION

• Check your breast once a month, have a through medical checkup once a year, and have mammograms annually if you are age 50 or older. Start mammograms earlier if you have a family history of breast cancer.

• Make fruits, vegetables, grains, and fish the mainstays of your diet.

• If you practice contraception, ask your doctor about the pros and cons of estrogen based birth control pills.

• If you are at high risk for breast cancer, talk to your doctor or gynecologist about managing menopause symptoms without estrogen pills.

RECONSTRUCTIVE BREAST SURGERY

Lumpectomy is not disfiguring the way breast surgery once was, but even mastectomy need not be permanently disfiguring. While some women choose to wear a prosthesis after a mastectomy. Others opt for reconstructive surgery. For three decades, the most common reconstructive surgery involve implanting a silicone filled prosthesis behind skin or muscles in the chest or wall. Some women claim to have develop debilitating immune disorder from leaking silicone implants, and in 1992 such implants were removed from the market since then, several scientific breast implants, although they have confirmed lesser, yet undesirable, side effect. Saline filled implants are now widely used. Surgeon can also transfer tissue from abdomen, back, or elsewhere to construct artificial breast replacement. The cosmetics result are impressive, but the surgery is costly and complex, produce additional scarring, and may cause weakness in the area from which tissue is removed.