Breast Cancer Treatment

Breast Cancer is a type of health problem that affects many women in the world. This common problem is responsible for damaging breast cells in our body. If people want to reduce this problem, they must contact doctors, surgeons or nurses. The healthcare team explains about the treatment of breast cancer in the healthcare research center. 

What is breast cancer? 

Breast cancer is a disease that occurs in breast tissue. It is the second most common cancer which mostly affects women. This problem occurs when breast cells grow uncontrollable and form a tumor. It occurs in one breast or both the breasts. 

Types of Breast Cancer

This tumor consists of different types, which are as follows:

• Invasive Ductal Carcinoma 

It is the second most common cancer, which occurs in the milk duct and affects other body parts. This type of problem mostly affects 70% to 80% patients. 

• Invasive Lobular Carcinoma 

This type of cancer mainly occurs in lobules. It spreads to surrounding breast tissues similar to ILC and affects 5 % to 10 % patients in our world. 

• Inflammatory Cancer

It is a rare and aggressive health condition in which the cancer cells block the lymph vessels in skin leads to swelling and redness in breast. 

• Paget’s disease of Breast

This problem mostly occurs in the skin of the nipple and area of darker cells. It creates different tumor cells, also known as Paget cells. This common problem mostly affects 1 % to 4 % of patients. 

• Phyllodes tumors

Phyllodes tumors are rare breast cancers which are mainly found in the connective tissues. This problem is most common in women above 40 years. 

• Metastatic Cancer

It is a common problem which mainly occurs beyond the breasts like liver, brain, lungs or bones. This type of cancer is also known as 4-stage breast cancer. 

• Triple Negative Cancer

It is a rare and aggressive issue which does not have receptors for HER2, estrogen and progesterone. This problem is more difficult for doctors due to lack of targeted therapies. It mostly affects 10% to 15% of patients. 

• HER2-Positive Cancer

It happens due to an excessive amount of HER2 protein. This problem is mainly treated with the help of targeted therapies. 

Symptoms 

The common symptoms of this health problem are as follows:

• Breast pain

This problem is also known as mastalgia, which occurs due to pain or discomfort in breast. 

• Fatigue

Breast cancer causes fatigue in our body which leads to many hormonal changes and inflammation.

• Lump in Breast or Underarm

It is a most common symptom of breast cancer, which makes your lump harder and painless. 

• Changes in nipple area

The skin in the nipple area becomes red, scaly or thickened which leads to breast cancer in individuals. 

• Swollen lymph nodes

This problem can cause swelling in lymph nodes under the arm or around the collarbone. 

How to Treat Breast Cancer?

The breast cancer can be prevented in following ways:

• Maintain Healthy Weight

Patients with obesity must have a risk of this cancer. The balanced diet and regular exercise helps to reduce this problem and maintains healthy weight of a person. 

• Quit Smoking

Smoking increases the risk of breast cancer in patients. Therefore, a patient must quit smoking to reduce its risk and improve his or her overall health. 

• Be Physically Active

Walking, swimming or cycling are some regular activities that help to lower cancer risks. A person must do moderate exercise for 1 week for his or her physical fitness. 

• Eat a Balanced Diet

The lean proteins, vegetables, fruits and whole grains are beneficial for your health. Sugary snacks, red meat and limit processed foods lead to increase in cancer risk. 

• Avoid Drinking Alcohol 

The excessive alcohol increases the risk of cancer in individuals. Therefore, a person can consume one drink of alcohol or less in one day. 

 Common Treatments of Breast Cancer in India

The common treatments involved in breast cancer are as follows:

• Diagnosis and Staging

Diagnosis is a first step of treating this health problem. This involves biopsy, mammogram or ultrasound to confirm breast cancer in our human body. After the confirmation, the next step is staging which determines the body parts affected due to this problem. This has become helpful for doctors in treating breast cancer in patients. 

• Surgery

It is a most common treatment which involves several procedures. Lumpectomy mainly removes the tumor and a small margin of surrounding tissue. Mastectomy involves removing the whole breasts. 

You can choose the type of surgery based on your needs for cancer treatment. 

• Radiation Therapy

This therapy kills cancer cells with the help of radiation. The doctors mainly use this therapy after surgery or if an individual is suffering from secondary breast cancer. 

• Targeted Therapy

Targeted therapy is a therapy which targets the specific features of cancer cells. For example, Herceptin is a medicinal drug which is mainly used to treat cancer that occurs due to HER2 protein. This treatment option can be combined with other treatments, which provides better results in the patient’s health. 

• Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy is mainly used when breast cancer becomes rare and aggressive in patients. It kills cancer cells with the help of medicinal drugs. Doctors use this option for treatment before or after surgery. 

• Immunotherapy

Immunotherapy is a better treatment option, which helps the immune system to fight with cancer cells. It is mainly useful in treating different breast cancers in patients. 

• Regular Screenings

Doctors use mammograms and breast exams to detect  breast cancer when this problem is most treatable in patients. They must follow the doctor’s prescription depending on their age and risk factors.