According to the latest studies made by American Cancer Society (ACS) more than 190,000 women were affected with breast cancer just in the year 1996 (ACS Breast). In terms of severity, breast cancer comes just after the lung cancer, being the cause of death for hundreds of women every year. But the good side is that several options are available to treat the patients of breast cancer.
Although prevention is the better way for treating any kind of disease, no such prevention method has been discovered as yet for the breast cancer. The recommendation from ACS suggested the women in the age group of 20 and more, to go through regular self examination process of their breast. The recommendation also asked the women to go for clinical checkup for every 3 years. (ACS Breast). Tumors can also be detected by using mammography, but the issue of when and how many times the mammograms could be done is still debatable. Mammography has been proved to be an effective way to diagnose the cancerous property of any tumor.
There are two main types if treatments for breast cancer, which are local and systemic. Local treatments are performed by surgical process and radiation therapy to control or kill the cancerous cells in the affected region. The systemic treatments are performed with the help of hormonal therapy and chemotherapy to kill or control the growth of the cancerous cells at any places of the body.
Being the common method to treat the breast cancer, the surgery or mastectomy basically deals with removing whole or part of the breast. There are different types of surgery methods for breast cancer. However, doctors might like to avoid this treatment method for the harmful after effects such as arm swelling, difficulty in moving shoulder and weakening in the nearest arm. In case there is no other way out than mastectomy, then the patient should go for breast reconstruction process performed after the surgery (Kushner 37).
The breast-sparing surgery is another variation of the surgical treatment, which consists of lumpectomies and segmental mastectomies. This surgery is performed by removing the cancerous lump without hampering the surrounding breast tissue. The patient should undergo radiation therapy as a post operative procedure for destroying the remaining cancerous cells in that region. To be on the safe side, doctors also prefer to take away the lymph nodes present under the arm to safeguard the lymphatic system against cancer.
Another known treatment method for breast cancer is the radiation therapy, which destroys the cancerous cells and holds back the growth process by using x-rays in high degree. The source of radiation could be any external source or the radioactive pellets inserted into the breasts or both. To get the radiation from outside, patients have to go to the clinic or health center in a daily basis. If the radiation is performed as a post-operative treatment of breast sparing surgery, then the patients have to take the radiation for a period of 5-6 weeks considering 5 days of radiation session per week. Finally, an additional booster dose of radiation is given to the affected area. Implant radiation requires the patient to get admitted into the hospital. The radiation therapy can generate side-effects like breast swelling and dehydrated skin at the radiated area of the body.
Chemotherapy is often used as a common procedure to treat breast cancer. Being a type of systemic therapies, it destroys the cancel cells by using a combination of certain useful drugs. The traditional method of chemotherapy is performed following a cycle of treatment period and recovery period and vice versa (NIH 23). Similar to the radiation therapy, it can also be performed for the outpatients. However chemotherapy has certain terrible side effects like loss of hair, nausea, loss of appetite, infertility, sores in the vaginal area, tiredness etc, which affects the patient very badly (ACS For Women 32). Although, all these side effects other than infertility might go away after completion of the treatment.
Among the other treatments of breast cancer, hormone therapy has come up to be a great success. In this method, medications are used to stop the hormone supply to the tumors, to impede the growth. This can be confirmed by removing hormone supplying body parts like glands and ovaries.
The bone marrow transplantation might provide positive breakthrough in treating breast cancer. This procedure involves transplanting healthy bone marrow from other part of the body or from some other person. However research is still going on to make this a great success.
Although prevention is the better way for treating any kind of disease, no such prevention method has been discovered as yet for the breast cancer. The recommendation from ACS suggested the women in the age group of 20 and more, to go through regular self examination process of their breast. The recommendation also asked the women to go for clinical checkup for every 3 years. (ACS Breast). Tumors can also be detected by using mammography, but the issue of when and how many times the mammograms could be done is still debatable. Mammography has been proved to be an effective way to diagnose the cancerous property of any tumor.
There are two main types if treatments for breast cancer, which are local and systemic. Local treatments are performed by surgical process and radiation therapy to control or kill the cancerous cells in the affected region. The systemic treatments are performed with the help of hormonal therapy and chemotherapy to kill or control the growth of the cancerous cells at any places of the body.
Being the common method to treat the breast cancer, the surgery or mastectomy basically deals with removing whole or part of the breast. There are different types of surgery methods for breast cancer. However, doctors might like to avoid this treatment method for the harmful after effects such as arm swelling, difficulty in moving shoulder and weakening in the nearest arm. In case there is no other way out than mastectomy, then the patient should go for breast reconstruction process performed after the surgery (Kushner 37).
The breast-sparing surgery is another variation of the surgical treatment, which consists of lumpectomies and segmental mastectomies. This surgery is performed by removing the cancerous lump without hampering the surrounding breast tissue. The patient should undergo radiation therapy as a post operative procedure for destroying the remaining cancerous cells in that region. To be on the safe side, doctors also prefer to take away the lymph nodes present under the arm to safeguard the lymphatic system against cancer.
Another known treatment method for breast cancer is the radiation therapy, which destroys the cancerous cells and holds back the growth process by using x-rays in high degree. The source of radiation could be any external source or the radioactive pellets inserted into the breasts or both. To get the radiation from outside, patients have to go to the clinic or health center in a daily basis. If the radiation is performed as a post-operative treatment of breast sparing surgery, then the patients have to take the radiation for a period of 5-6 weeks considering 5 days of radiation session per week. Finally, an additional booster dose of radiation is given to the affected area. Implant radiation requires the patient to get admitted into the hospital. The radiation therapy can generate side-effects like breast swelling and dehydrated skin at the radiated area of the body.
Chemotherapy is often used as a common procedure to treat breast cancer. Being a type of systemic therapies, it destroys the cancel cells by using a combination of certain useful drugs. The traditional method of chemotherapy is performed following a cycle of treatment period and recovery period and vice versa (NIH 23). Similar to the radiation therapy, it can also be performed for the outpatients. However chemotherapy has certain terrible side effects like loss of hair, nausea, loss of appetite, infertility, sores in the vaginal area, tiredness etc, which affects the patient very badly (ACS For Women 32). Although, all these side effects other than infertility might go away after completion of the treatment.
Among the other treatments of breast cancer, hormone therapy has come up to be a great success. In this method, medications are used to stop the hormone supply to the tumors, to impede the growth. This can be confirmed by removing hormone supplying body parts like glands and ovaries.
The bone marrow transplantation might provide positive breakthrough in treating breast cancer. This procedure involves transplanting healthy bone marrow from other part of the body or from some other person. However research is still going on to make this a great success.
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