Early diagnosis of breast cancer

Any modern person should know the symptoms and causes of breast cancer (BC), navigate the features of the diagnosis of this disease and prognosis. It is generally accepted that breast cancer is a “female” disease, but men are also susceptible to it.

According to the American Cancer Society^[1], currently the average risk of developing breast cancer among women in the United States is about 12%, that is, one in eight. In men, tumors of this localization are less common. According to a study by the National Breasts Cancer Foundation^[2], only one in a thousand of the stronger sex can ever be diagnosed with this pathology. But despite the statistics, survival rates for women with breast cancer are higher than for men. This can be explained by the fact that the former are more aware of the disease and are more attentive to their health.

Breast cancer is a pathological transformation and uncontrolled growth of cells in the mammary glands. It does not occur suddenly, the tumor grows and the affected areas enlarge. Unfortunately, there are still patients who, having noticed alarming symptoms, do not go to the doctor for fear of hearing a disappointing diagnosis. Do not take cancer as a death sentence. Remember that if the disease is detected at an early stage, the chances of a full recovery are much higher, and the five-year survival rate is 100%, according to a study by the National Breasts Cancer Foundation.^[3].

Symptoms of breast cancer

As a rule, there are usually no symptoms in the early stages, since the tumor is quite small (less than two centimeters in diameter). But you should always listen to your feelings. Pulling pain in the armpits, swelling in this area and increased sensitivity of the chest – these signs should be a reason to see a doctor. They can be “heralds” of breast cancer.

Seals of the mammary glands are considered one of the first symptoms of the disease. There may also be discharge from the nipples. The liquid that appears can be of different shades (from transparent to greenish), it can come out in the form of pus or spotting. Small wounds appear on the chest, turning into ulcers. The shape of the mammary gland begins to change, for example, it becomes swollen, the nipple is “retracted”.

Breast examination

The easiest way to detect breast cancer is self-examination. It is recommended to carry it out once a month, preferably on the same day (in the first few days after the end of menstruation). Self-determination of cancer can begin at the age of 18-20. There are many visual instructions on how to conduct an examination. The key aspects of this examination are a visual assessment of the shape of the breast and feeling the mammary glands with your fingers for the presence of lumps. Pay attention to redness, peeling or ulcers, the condition of the nipple, the presence or absence of discharge from it. It is also necessary to evaluate the color of the skin of the chest, it should not be unusual shades.

The appearance of seals is not a sentence, but only a reason for further examination. Breast masses may be benign. Modern diagnostics allows us to limit ourselves to a few simple procedures that can help establish an accurate diagnosis, detect breast cancer at an early stage and prevent the negative consequences of therapy.

Women of any age need to visit a mammologist every year. If the doctor, after a visual examination and palpation of the chest, suspects a pathology, he prescribes an ultrasound examination or mammography – an x-ray breast scan. The latter is shown to women after 35 years. This study allows you to see the tumor in the picture even before the first signs of it appear.

For younger women, mammography is not as informative due to the high density of the breast, so they are advised to undergo an ultrasound. With the help of this study, you can see the structure of the mammary glands and assess the condition of the lymph nodes, and thus assess the full picture of the changes that have occurred.

An analysis for tumor markers allows you to identify chemicals in the blood that produce tumor cells. This analysis is a clarifying diagnostic method, since the level of tumor markers can be elevated in some non-oncological diseases. It makes sense to determine the level of tumor markers only if there is a suspicion of a disease; it is not worth starting the examination with it.

To clarify the diagnosis, the doctor may prescribe computed and magnetic resonance imaging of the chest (CT and MRI). These methods make it possible to accurately determine the boundaries of the formation, as well as to assess the prevalence of the tumor process. A biopsy is done to find out if the tumor is cancerous. It is indicated for all patients with suspected cancer. The examination is carried out under local anesthesia. A hollow needle is inserted into the problem area, with the help of which material is taken for study. The study of biopsy material allows you to determine the type and stage of the tumor, as well as whether the neoplasm is hormone-dependent. This indicator is important for the further treatment regimen.

Risk Factors

It is definitely impossible to formulate the cause of breast cancer and predict who can develop it. But still, there are two groups of risk factors: those that cannot be influenced, and those that are associated with lifestyle.

The first group includes:

1. Age. Over the years, in our body there are “breakdowns” of certain genes. Mutations accumulated over a lifetime trigger the cancer process. As a rule, breast cancer is more common in women after 55 years of age, in men after 65 years of age.
2. Heredity. If there was one or more cases of the disease in the family, then this increases the likelihood of developing oncopathology in you. According to a number of studies^[4], only 12% of women without a hereditary anomaly are prone to breast cancer throughout their lives, in women with mutational genes, the likelihood of developing pathology increases to 72%.
3. Early menarche (first menstrual bleeding) and late menopause. These two stages in the life of every woman characterize the onset and cessation, respectively, of ovarian activity. The hormonal background of a woman changes, which increases the risk of developing breast cancer. According to Collaborative Group on Hormonal Factors in Breast Cancer article^[5], early onset of menstruation increases the likelihood of developing breast cancer, and later – lowers. According to the same study, menopause has the opposite effect. The earlier it occurs, the less likely it is to develop breast cancer, and with an increase in the reproductive period, the risk of breast cancer also increases.
4. Density of breast tissue. Determined by X-ray. It depends on the ratio of fibrous, adipose and glandular tissue in it. If it is increased, then the risk of developing breast cancer also increases. This may be due to physiological changes or mastopathy (breast disease, which is characterized by the growth of its tissues and the formation of benign neoplasms).

Factors that can be influenced include:

1. Obesity. Being overweight causes breast cancer. Adipose tissue produces the hormone estrogen, and its elevated levels stimulate the development of pathology.

2. Alcohol. Daily consumption of more than 10 grams of ethanol is associated with an increased risk of developing the disease of this localization for premenopausal women by 5% and in postmenopausal women by 9%.

3. Hormonal contraceptives. Women who have taken these drugs for a long time (more than 10 years) have a slightly higher risk of breast cancer than those who have used them for less than 5 years.

4. Late birth or lack thereof. In women who had a late first birth (over the age of 30) or who did not have a birth, the risk of developing breast cancer is several times higher than in those who gave birth before the age of 20.

In order to prevent breast cancer and maintain good general health, you should maintain a healthy body weight, eat a balanced diet and exercise regularly, performing at least minimal physical activity.

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