The Importance Of Breast Cancer

“Cancer” is the name for a group of diseases that start in the body at the cellular level. Even though there are many different kinds of cancer, they all begin with abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These abnormal cells lump together to form a mass of tissue or “malignant tumor”. Malignant means that it can spread to other parts of the body or Metastasize . If the breast is the original location of the cancer growth or malignant tumor, the tumor is called breast cancer. (American Cancer Society, 2014, as cited in cbcf.org)

We have all seen the pink ribbons. They have become a national, if not international symbol for breast cancer support and awareness. Breast cancer knows neither racial boundaries nor age restrictions. Females of all ages and ethnicities can develop breast cancer and it is the leading most common cancer among women. Calling attention to this often fatal disease is important by supporting its victims, families and friends of victims, as well as raising funds for breast cancer research. Though males are not immune from developing a breast cancer, for the purposes of this paper, this paper will be limited to information relating breast cancer in females.

Over the past two decades, mammography has become the central tool used to detect cancerous regions within the breast. This evolution has been enabled by advancements in the technology itself and its implementation into healthcare regulations of numerous countries around the world (Pisano et al., 2004). In its beginning stages, breast cancer is a relatively treatable disease, and increased awareness for both mammograms and self-breast examinations have led to earlier diagnoses. Studies suggest that increases in mammography screenings have been one of the main reasons that breast

In 2003, the recommendation from many health organizations for getting a screening mammogram was for women to begin at age 40, unless an abnormality was found during a self-breast exam (BSE) or clinical breast exam (CBE) prior to that age. In 2009, the US Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF) unanimously voted to change their recommendations on when women should start having screening mammograms. At that time, the recommendation was for women aged 40-49 to make their own decision on when to have a screening mammogram; Women aged 50-74 to have biennial screening mammograms. For women aged 75+, the USPSTF could

“In 2015, there are more than twenty-eight million women with a history of breast cancer in the United States of America. This Includes women currently being treated and women who have finished treatment. – BreastCancer.Org“ Breast cancer has taking over many people bodies, also lives. Anybody can get breast cancer from man to women. Cancer doesn’t have to be in your family history for you to get it.

One way of diagnoses for breast cancer is a mammogram. A mammogram is an x-ray picture of the breast. But the diagnostic mammogram

Breast cancer constitutes the second most prevalent cancer most common among women of the world with an estimated 1.62 million reported cases in 2012 which constitutes 25% of all cancer cases and ranks fifth among mortality due to cancer (Ferlay et al., 2015). In the United States, according to American Cancer Society an

Every day medical technology improves, helping us to improve the way we diagnose and treat patients with illnesses, like cancer. Two procedures that have made the detection of breast cancer easier are called Stereotactic Breast Biopsy and Breast Digital Tomosynthesis (D. David Dershaw and Laura Liberman, Steriotactic Breast Biopsy: Indications and Results | Oncology Journal, Breast Cancer Vomplications, 1998:1-7).

One out of eight women around the world develops the most common disease called Breast Cancer. In the United States, about 200,000 women suffer from this disease and it causes more than 40,000 death each year. Breast cancer is a cancer cell (malignant tumor) that forms in the breast. The cancerous cells grow in the breast and then invade the healthy cells and the surrounding tissues of the breast and it can also spread into other parts of the body. Breast cancer is more common in women but men can also get it too. One of the reasons that males are less likely to develop breast cancer because males have less estrogen and progesterone hormones which is a higher risk of breast cancer cell to grow. There are many risks factors that can cause

In the last years, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) has become a very popular method used for the early detection of breast cancer, because it has greater sensibility than mammography. But, opponents of MRI are concerned about this type of examination because of the belief that it may increase rates of mastectomy. However, different studies have been performed and no proof of this has been recorded (Dang and Zaguiyan et al 937). Although many people think that mastectomy may increase with MRI’s, I feel that these types of screenings should be more recommendable for women at high risk for breast cancer, because cancer, if not treated on time might be fatal.

Women from their twenties to thirties should get a mammogram every three years while women forty years old and older should get annual checkups (unless there is an issue that is found, which will usually cause checkups to be every 3 to 6 months). Annual checkups can help detect cancer early on, which in return would have less severe results. “Even for women 50+, skipping a mammogram every other year would miss up to 30% of cancers (mammography)”. The benefits and risks of mammography differ by age. In

The reason why I am touching on this subject is because breast cancer is the most common disease that affects women across the United States. This is known as the leading cause of death in women between the ages of 30 and 40, but some can happen in their 20s. Statistics show “According to the National Cancer Institute, one in eight women who live to be age 80 will develop breast cancer in her lifetime. This makes the disease the second most commonly diagnosed cancer among American women, after skin cancer.” (www.cancer.gov) Breast cancer is a lump found in the breast in which cells become abnormal and multiply uncontrollably, forming a tumor. Malignant cells begin to spread if untreated to original tumor which causes inflammation in the breast

Over 240,000 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in 2014 and it is estimated that 40,000 will not survive this terrible disease. Although these numbers seem daunting, believe it or not, breast cancer survival rates are actually on the incline. Many researchers and doctors believe this is due to the advances in treatment of cancers and in earlier detection which is the key in fighting almost any cancer; early detection. Women are taught to do monthly self-examinations to detect anything ‘out of the

Current research shows mammograms are stronger than in the past. In a recent study it

Breast cancer is a common malignancy diagnosed in women. In the United States one in eight women who live to the age of 95 will be diagnosed with breast cancer. Even with the high rate of diagnosis, it remains the most treatable due to early screening and improved detection methods. Mammography is the precedent for screening and diagnostic procedures in the breast cancer field. Its enhancements through the years, together with higher resolution, faster, lower-dose screen-film combinations, have contributed to earlier cancer detection in women.