Life Matters | spring 2005



 

Get the Facts on Breast Cancer

 
 
According to Stacy L. Smithers, MD, with Laurel Surgery Clinic, approximately every one in eight women have breast cancer. Breast cancer is the most commonly occurring cancer in women and the second leading cause of cancer deaths in women, second only to lung cancer.

Early Detection: Worth Doing Right
Early detection is the key to successful treatment of breast cancer. All women, beginning at age 20, should perform a monthly self-breast examination and receive yearly exams from a doctor or nurse practitioner. Regularly examining your breasts will familiarize you with the way they normally feel. If you find a lump, first check the other breast. If both feel the same, the lumpiness likely is normal. Call your doctor if you notice anything new or unusual.

Women also should begin having yearly mammograms beginning at age 40. This screening allows the detection of small tumors and “markers” for tumors before the tumors are large enough to feel on exam or cause symptoms.

After a mammogram, your physician can confirm that a mass or lesion is benign or malignant with other tests, such as breast ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging, or biopsy. With a biopsy, a sample of tissue is removed for examination. “Once a mass is felt or a suspicious abnormality is seen on a mammogram, a biopsy should be performed by a surgeon,” states Dr. Smithers.

What Surgical Options Are Available?
If the tissue turns out to be a cancer, there are several surgical options, depending on the size of the tumor, the size of the breast, and the aggressiveness of the tumor.

If your doctor decides you do need surgery, you may receive a lumpectomy—removal of the tumor with a small rim of surrounding normal breast tissue—and a sampling of the lymph nodes will be taken from under the arm. Women who have this type of surgery should receive about five to seven weeks of radiation therapy.

Other women may need a different kind of surgery called modified radical mastectomy, which includes complete removal of the breast tissue and lymph nodes under the arm. A plastic surgeon can reconstruct the breast at the time of mastectomy or at a later time. Many women prefer not to have reconstruction at all. Also, often women find that a support group of breast cancer survivors is helpful during treatment.

For more information, call Laurel Surgery Clinic at 649-7802.



The editorial content of this online publication is taken from the print version of Life Matters published by South Central Regional Medical Center.

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