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Breast Cancer

MEDICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA

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Summary

Breast cancer affects one in eight women during their lives. No one knows why some women get breast cancer, but there are many risk factors. Risks that you cannot change include

Age - the risk rises as you get older
Genes - two genes, BRCA1 and BRCA2, greatly increase the risk. Women who have family members with breast or ovarian cancer may wish to be tested for the genes.
Personal factors - beginning periods before age 12 or going through menopause after age 55

Other risks include obesity, using hormone replacement therapy (also called menopausal hormone therapy), taking birth control pills, drinking alcohol, not having children or having your first child after age 35, and having dense breasts.

Symptoms of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in size or shape of the breast, and discharge from a nipple. Breast self-exams and mammography can help find breast cancer early, when it is most treatable. One possible treatment is surgery. It could be a lumpectomy or a mastectomy. Other treatments include radiation therapy, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and targeted therapy. Targeted therapy uses substances that attack cancer cells without harming normal cells.

Men can have breast cancer, too, but it is rare.

NIH: National Cancer Institute

Start Here

Breast Cancer (American Academy of Family Physicians)Also in Spanish
Breast Cancer (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
Breast Cancer Overview (American Society of Clinical Oncology)
General Information about Breast Cancer (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
What Is Breast Cancer? (American Cancer Society)Also in Spanish

Diagnosis and Tests

BRCA Test (National Library of Medicine)Also in Spanish
Breast Biopsy (National Library of Medicine)Also in Spanish
Breast Cancer Early Detection and Diagnosis (American Cancer Society)
Breast Changes and Conditions (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
Breast Exam (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
HER2 (Breast Cancer) Testing (National Library of Medicine)Also in Spanish
Lymphoscintigraphy (American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America)Also in Spanish
MRI of the Breast (American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America)Also in Spanish
Needle Biopsy (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)Also in Spanish
Nipple Aspirate Test Is Not An Alternative To Mammography (Food and Drug Administration)Also in Spanish
PDL1 (Immunotherapy) Tests (National Library of Medicine)Also in Spanish
PTEN Genetic Test (National Library of Medicine)Also in Spanish
Risk Assessment, Genetic Counseling, and Genetic Testing for BRCA-Related Cancer in Women (U.S. Preventive Services Task Force) - PDF
Stages of Breast Cancer (National Cancer Institute)Also in Spanish
TP53 Genetic Test (National Library of Medicine)Also in Spanish
Tumor Marker Tests (National Library of Medicine)Also in Spanish
Ultrasound - Breast (American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America)Also in Spanish
Your Pathology Report (Living Beyond Breast Cancer)