Many women will suffer breast cancer throughout his life. In Spain, 30% of the tumors that originate in them occur in the breasts. In recent years there has been an increase in the incidence of breast cancer, which continues to be the most diagnosed in women. In fact, it is the second most common cancer in Spain. In them, breast cancer is the leading cause of death from this disease (although men can also suffer from it).
To make matters worse, There are more and more cases of breast cancer. In your report The cancer figuresthe Spanish Society of Medical Oncology (SEOM) has calculated that 36,395 new tumors of this type will be diagnosed in 2024. The number of new cases is the highest year after year.
The good news is that survival numbers are better. Although he is responsible for a 15% of total cancer deaths In women, the survival of patients with breast cancer is 96% one year after diagnosis and 86% five years after diagnosis.
Early detection has a lot to do with this improvement, but also the lifestyle changes that we must make if we want to avoid cancer as much as possible. Therefore, it is vitally important to know breast cancer symptoms and risk factors.
What is breast cancer and risk by age
He breast cancer is a disease in which breast cells begin to grow uncontrollably and form tumors. Although there are several types, most originate inside the ducts and/or lobules that produce breast milk. The earliest form is not life-threatening and can be detected in early stages.
However, cancer cells can spread to nearby breast tissue (what is known as “invasion”), generating lumps or thickening. If tumors are not detected in time or the disease becomes complicated, cancer can spread through the lymph nodes and the rest of the body (metastasis), threatening life.
Most breast cancers They are detected after the age of 50, which does not mean that it happened before. Furthermore, the prevalence is increasing in younger patients. For this reason, various world experts are recommending lowering the age at which the first mammograms are performed, a call that specialists from our country have also joined. In fact, Catalonia will increase screenings: they were carried out between the ages of 50 and 70 and now they will be carried out between the ages of 45 and 74.
Risk factors and lifestyle
Almost half of all breast cancers occur in women with no risk factors more specific than sex or age. Therefore, being born female is the biggest condition. Although only 0.5-1% of breast tumors occur in men, they are usually detected too late.
However, there are risk factors that can increase the likelihood of breast cancer, such as obesity, alcohol abuse, family history of breast cancer, radiation exposure, tobacco use, or the use of hormonal therapies for menopause. In addition, reproductive history also influences, such as being a late mother (after 30), not breastfeeding babies or not having children.
Having dense breasts is also an important risk factor that almost half of women usually have it without knowing it. On the other hand, there are genetic mutations that make patients more likely to suffer from breast cancer. As for risk factors that can change, experts recommend staying physically active, maintaining a healthy weight, and eating a varied diet of fruits and vegetables.
How to do a breast self-exam
Early diagnosis of breast cancer through screening saves many lives. Besides, the self-examination of the breasts for lumps It allows us to discover changes that can raise the alarm before this silent disease spreads.
The best time to do a breast self-exam is during or right after menstruation. How to do it? We can follow several steps. First, we must examine breasts in a mirror visually, first by putting your hands on your hips, then by throwing your arms forward and, finally, above your head. Being in the three positions, we must check that the breasts and nipples retain the same appearance, size, shape and usual color. It is important to look for:
- Deformations and inflammations.
- Contractions in our breasts or nipples when changing position.
- dimples, wrinkles or lumps on the skin that were not there before.
- Changes in the position of a nipple or if it is stuck inside instead of standing out.
- Redness and rashes.
- Dolores and discomfort (taking into account the frequency and hormonal timing).
- Secretions through the nipple spontaneously and without squeezing.
After the visual examination, we move on to touch. Lying on your back, you should feel your breasts to detect lumps and other abnormalities. Is important to explore the left breast with the right hand and the right with the left hand. Fingers should be kept straight and together. The movement should be circular, describing the size of a coin, more or less.
Next, you have to ‘sweep’ the entire breast, from top to bottom and from side to side (from armpit to neckline). For the standing examination, you must follow the same steps, first raising one arm and then the other. Doing it in the shower is usually the most comfortable.
Symptoms, diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer
The most common signs of breast cancer are one or more palpable nodules in the breast, telorrhagia or hemorrhagic discharge through the nipple, swollen or painful axillary nodes, changes in the color of the breast, orange peel skin and changes in the dermis of the breast, eczema on the nipple, retraction of the skin, increased thickness or swelling of part of the breast, and sagging of part of the breast or nipple.
It is important to keep in mind that finding A lump in the breast does not necessarily mean that we have cancer breast, since most breast lumps are not cancerous or irregular. However, whenever we detect a change or something unusual in the breasts, we should consult with medical professionals as soon as possible.
The diagnosis is usually made after a mammogram or ultrasound that precedes a breast biopsy. As for the post-diagnosis treatment of breast cancer, it differs greatly depending on the person and the stage of the tumor. Radiotherapy, chemotherapy, homonotherapy, immunotherapy or other options such as lumpectomy, mastectomy and other surgeries may be needed.
Breast cancer survival
Currently, breast cancer survival rates They are positive and hopeful. Thanks to research, prevention and early detection, mortality has decreased significantly. However, not all tumors are the same. In some cases, they continue to have a poor prognosis.
Triple negative breast cancer, for example, is the most aggressive and has a higher probability of relapse. HER2+ is also characterized by its aggressiveness and metastatic disease has a 5-year survival rate of 25%. Scientific progress is increasingly discovering new targets and more ways to try to cure these types of cancer. Recently, the Spanish Health Ministry approved the first immunotherapy for triple negative. Who knows what we will see in a few years. Until then, caution is the best weapon.