Early diagnosis of breast cancer is the key to saving a breast and most importantly, saving a life. Women should have regular mammograms after the age of 40. All women should do breast self-examination at home every month.
If you feel anything out of the ordinary during a self examination, note the area and tell your doctor right away. If you experience a change in the appearance of a nipple, there is discharge, or you find a lump or an area of hard tissue, it is imperative that you be examined by a doctor. Also notice if you have any kind of soreness or pain.
It cannot be stressed enough: Early detection is a vital part of surviving breast cancer. If your doctor finds a lump, he or she will order more testing to be done. A biopsy may be done to see if the tumor is benign (non-cancerous) or malignant (cancer).
Once breast cancer has been diagnosed, the next step is to find out how far the cancer has spread and in what stage it is. Often, if it is caught early on, a lumpectomy is done. Some women choose to have radiation and chemotherapy before surgery to try to shrink the cancer so they do not have to have a breast removed. When a woman has a mastectomy (breast removal), the lymphatic nodes under the arm are often taken to ensure the cancer does not reoccur. Many women have a lumpectomy - where the lump is all that is removed - followed by chemotherapy and radiation. Hormone therapy may be prescribed as well.
A decade or so ago, the common belief was that breast cancer "runs in families". It can be genetic, but research shows that 90 percent of breast cancer diagnoses have nothing to do with a family gene. Breast cancer does not discriminate according to DNA.
Due to education, self-examination, mammography and earlier diagnosis, more women are surviving breast cancer than ever before. This is why a woman must know her own body and be able to detect the slightest change in her health. If you are not already doing monthly exams, find out how they are done and start doing them. If you are 40 years of age or older, you should be having regular mammograms.
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Know the Signs Symptoms Of Breast Cancer before you are too late. Visit http://www.breastcancerandtreatment.com/Breast_Cancer_Symptom.html for complete guide.
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