Breast Cancer
When breast cells change and develop into malignant cells that proliferate and create tumors, it is known as breast cancer. Although it can sometimes affect men and persons assigned male at birth (AMAB), as well as younger women, breast cancer usually affects women and individuals designated female at birth (AFAB) who are 50 years of age or older. Medical professionals may use treatment to eradicate malignant cells or surgery to remove tumors in order to treat breast cancer.
Overview
What is breast cancer?
One of the most prevalent malignancies affecting women and those assigned female at birth (AFAB) is breast cancer. It occurs when breast malignant cells proliferate and develop into tumors. A tumor may spread from your breast to other parts of your body in about 80% of invasive breast cancer cases.
Although breast cancer usually strikes women over 50, it can also strike women and people AFAB under 50. Breast cancer can also strike men and those who were designated male at birth (AMAB).
What are the types of Breast ?
In order to customize treatment to be as effective as possible with the fewest possible side effects, healthcare experts identify the many types and subtypes of cancer. Typical forms of breast cancer consist of:
- Your milk ducts are the initial site of invasive (infiltrating) ductal carcinoma (IDC), a malignancy that spreads to neighboring breast tissue. In South Africa, it is the most prevalent kind of breast cancer.
- Lobular breast cancer: This type of breast cancer begins in the lobules, which are the glands in your breast that produce milk, and it frequently spreads to other breast tissue nearby. In South Africa, it is the second most prevalent type of breast cancer.
- Similar to IDC, ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is a type of breast cancer that begins in the milk ducts. The distinction is that DCIS stays inside your milk ducts.
Symptoms and Causes
What are breast cancer symptoms?
Your breasts may be impacted by the illness in many ways. There are some very specific symptoms of breast cancer. Others can merely appear to be distinct parts of your breast from the rest. Additionally, breast cancer may not exhibit any signs. But when it occurs, the following symptoms could appear:
- A lump or bulk that could feel as tiny as a pea.
- A shift in your breasts’ dimensions, form, or contour.
- A shift in how your breast or nipple’s skin feels or looks. Your skin may appear scaly, puckered, dimpled, or irritated. Compared to other areas of your breast, it could appear darker, redder, or purple.
- A lump or thickening that lasts the whole of your menstrual cycle in or around your breast or underarm.
- A marble-like hardened area under your skin.
- A fluid flow from your nipple that is either clear or tinged with blood.
What is the cause of breast cancer?
According to experts, breast cancer develops when breast cells undergo mutations and turn into malignant cells that divide and proliferate to form tumors. They don’t know what causes the shift. But according to study, there are a number of risk factors that could raise your likelihood of getting breast cancer. These consist of:
- Age: Being 55 or older.
- Gender: The disease is far more common in women and AFAB individuals than in males and AMAB individuals.
- Family history: You run the chance of getting breast cancer if any of your parents, siblings, kids, or other close relatives have the disease.