Breast Cancer Diagnosis

Introduction of breast cancer

Breast cancer is a malignant or cancerous tumor that affects the cells of the breasts. Being the second most prevalent type of cancer in the female population after skin cancer, it can also develop in men, though not frequently. It is characterized by the uncontrolled growth of cells in the breast, forming a lump known as a tumor. While these cancerous cells are present, they grow in size and can penetrate adjoining tissues and organs and move to other regions of the body—a process known as metastasis.

Classification of breast cancer has diverse factors such as the type of cancer cells, hormone receptors (estrogen and progesterone), and HER2 protein. There are five major subtypes, and these include invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC), invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC), inflammatory breast cancer (IBC), & medullary and mucinous.

Signs and Symptoms

Although many women with breast cancer may not present any symptoms, there could be various symptoms that point towards breast cancer. These include:

• A mass or thickening, fullness or indentation, or swelling or a visible abnormal growth in any area of the breast or the chest.

• Breast lumps or thickening, shape, or contour modification of the breast or nipple

• Skin ulceration of the breast in the form of dimpling, puckering, areas of plane redness, or scale.

• Nipple discharge or inversion

• Pain in the breast or armpit

Any of these changes should be reported to a doctor since they might be a sign of breast cancer or another disease.

Screening and Early Detection

They have found that through regular screening, breast cancer is easily identified at an early stage before it develops into something worse. The objective of screening is to detect cancers at a time when they are most easily handled or when they are still small and have not metastasized. Screening includes mammography, clinical breast examination, and breast self-examination.

Mammography is the primary modality of breast cancer screening and employs low-energy X-rays to produce an image of the breast. Mammography can identify cancer that has not developed into a lump that can be felt by the physician when examining the breast. Women forty years and older should undergo mammography; however, frequencies vary depending on the risk factors. Mammography screening might be partially or fully reimbursable under an insurance plan depending on the age and other risk factors.

Another type of screening is a clinical breast exam, where a healthcare provider feels for lumps in the breasts. Such exams entail palpation of the breasts and the armpits for any form of lumps or any other irregularities. Clinical breast examinations need to be done every three years for women who are 25-39 years old and every 1-2 years for women 40 years old and above.

Breast self-exam refers to the periodic check-up of the breast for lumps or other changes and is part of breast cancer screening. Women should practice self-examinations on their breasts every month from their 20s. Even if self-exams do not always identify cancer, they will teach the woman what the breasts should look or feel like and may identify changes or irregularities.

Diagnosis Tests

Sometimes, a lump or abnormality may be felt during the screening exam, and a more invasive examination will be done to know if it is cancerous. These tests can include:

Biopsy

There is, however, no single sure test that is used in diagnosing breast cancer; a biopsy is the most accurate one. A tissue containing a suspicious area is removed, and a section of it is put through a microscope to identify cancer cells. The biopsy can be a fine-needle aspiration, a core needle biopsy, or a surgical biopsy, among others.

Imaging tests

Imaging tests can provide information on the dimensions, position, and extent of a breast tumor. These tests may involve the use of ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and computed tomography (CT) scans. Imaging tests may help a doctor locate and describe a tumor, but additional cytological or histological examination is required to determine the malignant nature of the tumor.

Blood tests

They sometimes involve taking a blood sample in which one may find traces of tumor markers or some other substance that points towards cancer. However, they are not simple tools that can be used individually to diagnose breast cancer but that are usually used with others.

Sentinel lymph node biopsy

Such tests are conducted to check the extent of the cancer spreading to glands known as lymph nodes, which are small, bean-shaped structures in the immune system. A radioactive material or dye is injected around the tumor, and the initial nodes that become radioactive are collected and examined for cancer.

Staging and Grading

Breast cancer must, of course, be staged and graded once the patient has been diagnosed with the ailment. Staging and grading are in a way related, as staging depicts how far the cancer has reached while grading shows how fast the cancer is most likely to progress.

Breast cancer staging is determined by the size of the tumor, the extent of lymph node involvement, and metastatic spread to other organs or structures. They run from 0 to IV with 0 cancer, which is non-invasive, and stage IV as advanced cancer that has affected other parts of the body.