An overview of breast cancer

List of Contents
Overview
Risk factors
Staging of Breastcancer
Prognostic Factors

Overview
Breast cancer affects about one in ten women at some time during their lives and is, after lung cancer, the leading cause of cancer deaths among women. It hits home extra hard because, unlike many other cancers, it involves self-image. Breasts are one of the most visible parts of womanhood. Women nurse children with them and they are a part of sexual identity. The thought of losing a breast makes most women feel very uncomfortable.

Fortunately, the rates of death due to breast cancer have declined significantly in recent years, with the largest decreases in younger women. These decreases are probably the result of earlier detection and improved treatment. Of the 35,000 new cases of breast cancer in the UK each year, treatment results in a cure in around two thirds.

Breast cancer is a disease in which malignant (cancerous) cells are found in the tissues of the breast. Each breast has 15-20 sections called lobes, which have many smaller sections called lobules. The lobes and lobules are connected by thin tubes called ducts. The most common type of breast cancer is known as an 'invasive adenocarcinoma,' which arises from either the ducts or the lobules. Invasive ductal carcinoma is the most common (70 per cent of all breast cancers). It is found in the cells of the ducts and usually forms a hard lump.

There are other, less common types of breast cancer which include: Intraductal carcinoma or non-invasive breast cancer, which is confined to the ducts and has not invaded surrounding tissue; this type accounts for five per cent of all cases 'Medullary' carcinoma, a well-confined cancer that also appears in the ducts accounts for seven per cent of all breast cancers 'Mucoid' carcinoma, a ductal carcinoma, contains mucus-producing cells and accounts for three per cent of all cases 'Tubular' carcinoma is an unusual invasive ductal type which makes up two per cent of all breast cancers Paget's disease is a rare breast cancer in the ducts beneath the nipple and starts with an itchy, eczema-like rash around the nipple Inflammatory breast cancer is also rare. The breast looks as if it's inflamed because of its red appearance and warmth. The skin may show signs of ridges or it may have a pitted appearance. A biopsy of skin will show tumour cells.