It is vital for you to know the many symptoms of breast cancer
and what to do if you suspect even one. Although the incidence
of breast cancer has risen dramatically since 1970, the incidence
of death due to breast cancer did not keep pace. This suggests
that more education and screening for breast cancer symptoms,
with earlier detection and much-improved treatment protocols,
may be attributed to helping over two million women who
have already been treated and are presently breast cancer
survivors.
In your preventive efforts to look for breast
cancer symptoms, you are encouraged to perform breast
self-examinations monthly, around the end of your menstrual
period, or at the same time each month if you are postmenopausal.
You should be familiar with the size, shape and feel of your
breasts so any changes will be noticed. Until the age of 40,
you should have an examination of your breasts by your doctor
every three years and then every year thereafter. Because
some tumors develop without any breast cancer symptoms, it
is still recommended that you have mammograms yearly,
also starting at the age of 40. Although there is some controversy
about mammograms, they can detect small tumors before they
can be felt and before they have time to spread
to other parts of your body.
To better understand a breast tumor, information follows
about cancer itself, and where and how it develops in the
breast. The imaging and testing methods that doctors follow
to derive information about a woman’s tumor show there
is much information to acquire and many ways to do it. The
particulars of Stage III breast
cancers are explained in detail, showing there are many specific
differences within that classification, with a discussion
of Stage IV breast cancer following.
Women often talk about advanced breast
cancer and the information below will clarify its individual
difference.
Knowing what to look for in terms of breast cancer symptoms
and knowing the basics about cancer itself can help you keep
a level head if breast cancer (or even other cancers) touch
you or someone you love!
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