Breast Cancer

Breast cancer staging describes how much cancer is in the body which is treated with chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and drugs. It has both medical and pathologic staging systems for breast cancer. The pathologic stage also called the medical stage is determined by examining tissue removed during an operation. If surgery is not conceivable, sometimes right away cancer will be given a clinical stage instead. Imaging tests like x-rays, CT scans, MRIs, ultrasound, and PET scans may also give information about how much and where cancer is in the body. In the system called TNM, every cancer is assigned a letter or number to describe the tumor, node, and metastases.

Early detection is always better and can be done through screening methods. If family history is there for breast cancer, then one should go for the advice of a doctor. Screening methods are medical breast examination (doctors or nurses examine women's breasts for lumps), mammography, and other imaging techniques. If the lump is there in the breast it can be breast cancer. X-rays are taken to closely observe the breast cancer which is known as a mammogram. After lump detection or other sign mammogram is used.

Most of the women suffering from breast cancer have to face breast surgery as a part of treatment. Different ins and outs are there due to which breast surgery is done: to remove cancer cells consist of breast-conserving surgery and mastectomy, to find whether cancer is spreading or spread already including a biopsy or axillary lymph node dissection, after removal of cancer for resorting the shape of the breast that is breast reconstruction. Surgery side effects are there.

Radiologists are medical doctors that specialize in diagnosing and treating injuries and diseases using medical imaging procedures such as X-rays, computed tomography (CT), The nurses is involved in the care of patients before and after imaging or procedures, including administration of medications, monitoring of vital signs and monitoring of sedated patients magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), nuclear medicine, positron emission tomography (PET) and ultrasound.

Men are having a small amount of breast tissue, during puberty in girls tissue grow and develops but in men, it doesn’t. As breast tissue is there in men additionally, they can also get breast cancer like in women. Most of the men are not aware of this and the treatment of breast cancer males is mostly delayed as compared to females because of unawareness. So many things are there that raise breast cancer in men like if any female in the family or close relative is having cancer, radiation exposure to the chest, Klinefelter's syndrome, etc. Symptoms of breast cancer are the same in men like women. Awareness should be there so that we can save our lives.

Cancer cells are very complex cells and it is challenging for clinicians to manage breast cancer therapy. Tumor cells are having different phenotypes and deregulated apoptotic and these characteristics are responsible for improper therapeutic response. For multidrug resistance events major role is played by membrane transporters, they are the cell’s first line of contact with anticancer drugs. So cell structure and biological properties of the cell lead to drug-resistance and a decrease in the intracellular activity of drugs. Breast growth is regulated by the interaction between hormones and growth factors. Genetic changes in growth factor can lead to abnormalities. The immune system of host play a substantial role during breast cancer, breast cancer is a complex disease.

Immunotherapy improves the aftereffect of clinical treatment in breast cancer patients. Targeted treatment is the approach used to directly target tumour cells, side effects of immunotherapy can be decreased.

Nurses play an important role during the treatment of breast cancer because they can help the patient to build physically and mentally. They can educate patients about risk factors, ways to reduce them. Nurses involved in breast cancer care have an impact on the early discovery of breast cancer, treatment, and they serve as advocates for women with the disease.

Breast cancer management takes different approaches that depend on the physical and biological characteristics of the disease, age, overall health and personal preferences of the patient. There are 2 types of treatment classified into local therapy (surgery and radiotherapy) and systemic treatment (chemo-, endocrine, and targeted therapies). The mainstay of breast cancer management is surgery for the local and regional tumor, followed by a combination of chemotherapy, radiotherapy, endocrine therapy, and targeted therapy. Radiation treatment includes utilizing high-vitality X-rays or Gamma rays that target a tumor or post-surgery tumor site. Cryoablation trial treatments are accessible for women with small or early-stage breast cancer. The rejuvenation of the breast after breast cancer surgery is included in holistic approaches to cancer management to address identity and expressive aspects of the disease whereas reconstruction can take place at the same time as cancer-removing surgery, takes to an inordinate length of time later so some women decide not to have reconstruction and they opt for a prosthesis instead. Epidemiologic risk factors vary by the hormone receptor expression of the breast cancer divided into preventable and non-preventable.

Breast cancer incidence rates increase sharply with age, becoming substantial before the age of 50 years. Major risk factors that occur are during the premenopausal years, the rate of increase in incidence is common around the world, approximately 8%-9% per year, breastfeeding each child for less than 6 months, and physical inactivity, are each linked to an estimated 3% of female breast cancer cases. Some other factors include oral contraceptives; hormone replacement therapy, ionizing radiation, and diethylstilboestrol use in pregnancy are causes of breast cancer and lifestyle factors including overweight and obesity, alcohol and certain occupational exposures. Breast cancer, like other forms of cancer, can result from multiple environmental and hereditary risk factors like individual person's development, exposure to microbes, medical interventions, and dietary exposures to nutrients, energy and toxicants, chemicals from industrial, agricultural processes and from consumer products.

One of the most aggressive types of breast cancer occurring in women of any age is inflammatory breast cancer. The typical presentation is rapid swelling, sometimes associated with skin changes, persistent itching rapid increase in breast size, redness and nipple retraction. It is often regarded as systemic cancer. Breast cancer is diagnosed by a biopsy where it confirms as malignancy Ultrasound is useful for looking at some breast changes, such as lumps or changes in women with dense breast tissue especially those that can be felt but not seen on a mammogram that are best breast cancer screening tests. All Inflammatory breast cancers start as Stage IIIB since they involve the skin but if cancer has spread to lymph nodes around the collarbone or inside the chest, its stage IIIC and cancer that has spread outside the breast and nearby lymph nodes it is stage IV.

Mammograms can help in saving lives by detecting breast cancer early. The women who are not having any sign and symptoms of breast cancer can also go for mammography, this is known as a primary mammogram. During screening mammogram, two or more X-rays pictures are taken of each breast. Micro calcification can be detecting using screening mammography that indicates the presence of Breast Cancer. A diagnostic mammogram can be used after screening mammogram to investigate the symptoms in details that are detected in screening mammogram. Mammography related controversies are also there because of False-positive results, over diagnosis, and overtreatment, False-negative results, Radiation exposure, etc. Screening mammogram and Diagnostic mammogram.

A healthy diet and maintaining weight can reduce the risk of breast cancer. Smoking during early adulthood and adolescence can increase the risk of breast cancer in the latter stage of life. Eating plant-based food and reducing the alcohol consumption helps in prevention of Breast Cancer. Physical activities  particularly after menopause like cycling and walking helps in reducing the risk of breast cancer. Breastfeeding also reduces the risk of breast cancer. Hormone replacement therapy, use the contraceptive pill can increase the menace of breast cancer. Pregnancy also affects breast cancer; women who are starting their family early are at lower breast cancer risk than the women who are giving birth at a late age.

According to the studies combination of factors are responsible for breast cancer risk. The main factor is age, most of the breast cancer cases noticed in women with age 50 or older, Genetic mutations are also risk factor behind breast cancer. Mutations in certain genes like BRCA1 and BRCA2 can go from one generation to other generation and it can increase the risk of breast cancer.

Over the past 40 years, breast cancer treatment has greatly improved due to lessons learned through clinical trials. Clinical trials test the safety and benefits of new treatments as well as new combinations (or new doses) of standard treatments. They can also study other parts of care including risk reduction, diagnosis and screening. People volunteer to take part in clinical trials. Those who join help further the knowledge base that helps improve breast cancer care.

A case study is a research strategy and an empirical inquiry that investigates a phenomenon within its real-life context. Case studies are based on an in-depth investigation of a single individual, group or event to explore the causes of underlying principles.