Title: What is breast cancer?
Breast cancer—take 5 minutes to get the picture!
The breast is a gland that produces milk to feed the newborn baby. It plays an important
role in motherhood, womanhood, and in how women perceive their body.
Its structure is complex: it is comprised of fatty tissue, giving it its shape,
and where the mammary glands are located. These glands are made up of ducts and
lobules and are directly influenced by sex hormones: estrogen and progesterone.
Like all organs, the breasts are drained by the lymph system and its filters, the
lymph nodes.
The development of breast cancer begins in the cells of the ducts or lobules. As
with other cancers, the cancer cells can seep into adjacent tissues, and then spread
to the lymph nodes and other organs: the bones, lungs, liver, brain.
In addition to the risk factors common to all cancers, other risk factors specific
to breast cancer have been identified; essentially, these are hormonal factors such
as menstruation before the age of 12, menopause after the age of 55, no pregnancies
or a late first pregnancy; another well-known factor is the family gene factor.
With 1.15 million new cases each year, breast cancer is the most common type of
female cancer. It is the leading cause of cancer mortality among women.
The incidence rate increases steadily from 30 onwards but especially after 50. It
is important to note that it can also occur in men, but this is very rare.
Screening consists in detecting a malignancy before symptoms occur, and is particularly
relevant to breast cancer.
The earlier breast cancer is detected, the greater the chances of recovery, hence
the importance of screening. There are basically two screening methods:
- Palpation of the breasts by the patient or by a physician, in order to detect any
anomaly in the consistency of the breast
- The mammogram, thanks to its high sensitivity, low cost, and accessibility, is still
the radiological examination of choice and is recommended every two years from the
age of 50
It is only when cancer cells are present in these samples that breast cancer is
diagnosed.
In order to offer the most suitable treatment, diagnosis will be accompanied by
an analysis of the tumor’s characteristics: size, location in the breast, structure,
evaluation of hormone sensitivity, and assessment of the extent of invasion.
Four types of treatment can be used alone or in combination, depending on the stage
of the breast cancer and its characteristics:
- Surgery: to remove the tumor; this may be combined with breast reconstruction, and
is the preferred curative treatment.
- Radiotherapy: to destroy any remaining cells by radiation.
- Chemotherapy: designed to kill any remaining cells or stabilize the tumor by chemical
treatment.
- Hormone therapy: to neutralize hormone-sensitive cancer cells.
Whatever treatment is offered, given the psychosocial importance of the breasts
for women and their partners, it is important for the patient to undergo psychological
monitoring.
Sanofi-aventis is involved with many associations and partners on different continents
to fight cancer on all fronts.