What is breast cancer?

Breast cancer can be identified as a heterogeneous disease that starts at the breast due to the uncontrolled growth of breast cells and the creation mass of tissues called tumors. Breast cancer occurs in women, and sometimes in men. Like other breast cancer cells can develop, progress, and invade the surrounding tissues in your breast. It can also metastasize throughout your body to generate new tumor cells. This process is called the metastasis stage.

What are the types of breast cancer?

There are a variety of different types of breast cancers.

Invasive ductal carcinoma: It originates in milk ducts, grows through the wall of the duct, and then spreads to other parts of the breast tissues. This type of breast cancer is the most common type of breast cancer.
Invasive lobular carcinoma: it origins in the lobules of the breast. It grows and spreads from lobules to other breast tissues.
Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC): 10-15% of all breast cancers are relevant for TNBC. It is recognized as one of the most challenging breast cancer types to treat. This cancer lacks estrogen and progesterone receptors, as well as a protein known as HER2. It's the reason for poor prognosis and treatment efficacy.
Inflammatory breast cancer: It accounts for 1–5% of all breast cancers. It can be identified as a rare and aggressive cancer type as cancer cells are capable of blocking lymph vessels in the breast skin. So it is evident that patients with inflammatory breast cancer have swollen, red, and dimpling breast skin.

Signs and symptoms of breast cancer

Breast cancer signs and symptoms are different from each other. It would depend on the person's disease conditions.

New mass or lump in the breast
Change the size and shape of the breast
Redness of your skin—breast, and nipple
Pain in the area of the breast and nipple
Swelling part of the breast
Blood-stained discharge from your nipple
Irritation of breast skin

Keep in mind, some people don’t show any signs or symptoms. In that situation, mammograms are the best option to identify diseases.

Risk factors for breast cancer

Several research studies have proved that the main risk factor for occurring breast cancer is being a woman and getting older. Most reported breasts occurred in women 50 years or older than it.

these include:

Age: risk is increasing with age. For instance, being 55 or older women can be diagnosed with breast cancer.
Sex: most breast cancer cases are reported among women more than men.
Genetic mutations: 5-10% of breast cancer cases reported due to genetic mutations such as BRCA1, BRCA2
Family history: if you have parents, siblings, or children who have ever been subjected to breast cancer ever, you are more likely to get breast cancer at some point in your lifetime. Otherwise, if you have had breast cancer previously, you may have a second chance to undergo breast cancer.
Alcohol and tobacco consumption: Research studies demonstrated that consumption of alcohol and tobacco has a huge impact on increasing the risk of different types of cancers including breast cancer.
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT): it has a higher risk of being diagnosed with breast cancer.

Prevention of breast cancer

There are many factors that will impact breast cancer throughout your lifetime. But you can avoid some factors such as getting older, family hits, or genetic mutations. Not only that, but taking care of your health can reduce the risk of breast cancer.
For that, 
Need a physically active
Maintain a healthy lifestyle by maintaining a healthy weight.
Avoid drinking alcohol 
Be aware of risky hormone replacement therapy 
If you have a family history of breast cancer, you should talk to your family doctor about further checks before taking the risk.

Diagnosis of breast cancer

You need to get support from a healthcare provider to perform a breast examination. You should provide some details such as family history, existing symptoms, and other medical histories to determine and recommend the test that is suitable for identifying breast abnormalities.

The test may include:

Ultrasonography: This test typically uses sound waves. It has the ability to take a picture of the tissues inside your breast. This test is widely used to determine and diagnose breast lumps.
Mammogram: It uses X-ray images to detect abnormal growth in the breast. This is critical for detecting breast cancer at an early stage. Having a regular mammogram can reduce the risk of breast cancer.
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) uses magnets and radio waves to take detailed pictures of breast conditions. This is always used in conjunction with a mammogram in women who are at a high risk of developing breast cancer.
Positron emission tomography (PET) scanning: This is used to identify suspicious areas in your breast.

Treatment for breast cancer

There are several breast cancer treatments that we can use, considering the kind of breast cancer and identifying the stage of breast cancer. Healthcare providers tailor your treatment after careful consideration of your background, including the location and size of tumors, lab test results, and metastasis stage.

Surgery removes the cancerous tissues in your breast and the surrounding normal tissues.
Chemotherapy is a special kind of medicine that is used to shrink tumor cells. It’s usually used after surgery to remove any remaining surrounding cancer cells and reduce the progression of tumors.
Radiation therapy is also used after surgery to remove any remaining tumor cells.
Hormone therapy: This therapy is used to prevent women from gaining weight. because some cancer cells use hormones such as estrogen and progesterone to grow This therapy is applied after surgery to reduce the risk of breast cancer recurrence.


Author: Nimalsha Hansani| nim_niii

Resources : 

https://breastcancernow.org/
https://www.breastcancer.org/

What is Breast Cancer