During the month of October, in many countries around the world, you may have seen campaigns or events in the shape of pink ribbons. “The Pink Ribbon is the globally recognized logo for breast cancer prevention and treatment, and is used to promote the message of “early prevention, early detection and early treatment”. Governments recognize October as Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
Breast cancer is often referred to as the “Pink Killer”, and its incidence ranks first among female malignant tumors. Breast cancer can also occur in men, but it is less common. The following are the 4 most frequently asked questions about breast cancer on the Internet.
A close relative in my family has breast cancer.
How much am I at risk?
This question is actually asking whether breast cancer is a hereditary disease. Speaking of which, we have to mention the famous American Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie. Her mother was afflicted by breast cancer for many years and suffered a lot. After a genetic test, she found that she also carries the same cancer-causing genes, and her risk of breast cancer is much higher than that of the general public. in May 2013, she declared that she has had both of her breasts removed preventively, so as to reduce the risk of breast cancer.
Breast cancer is indeed a very typical type of tumor in which genetic factors play an important role. The two genes associated with hereditary breast cancer are BRCA1 and BRCA2, and carriers of BRCA1/BRCA2 mutations have a 10 to 20 times higher risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer than the general population. Carrying this gene also increases the risk of ovarian cancer, pancreatic cancer, male breast cancer and prostate cancer.
The percentage of Chinese breast cancer patients with BRCA1/BRCA2 mutations is 3.9%, while the percentage of those with a family history of the mutation can reach 16.9%, and the percentage of those with a family history of the mutation and younger than 50 years of age can be as high as 20%.
If you test positive, you have an 80% chance of developing breast cancer. But don’t get too nervous. If you do test positive, be thankful that you at least have enough time for prevention, early screening, early treatment, and a chance for a cure.
Jesus, cancer!
Can’t I live forever?
This is going to answer the question of the cure rate of breast cancer. With the advancement of medical treatment, breast cancer has become one of the most effective solid tumors. Especially for early-stage breast cancer, the five-year survival rate can reach more than 90%.
With the comprehensive treatment of breast cancer (including surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, endocrine therapy and targeted therapy, etc.), China’s medical profession has made the 5-year cure rate of breast cancer reach a level close to that of western countries.
Breast cancer is a systemic disease. The treatment effect is closely related to factors such as pathological staging and whether standardized treatment is given. Therefore, patients should pay attention to the whole treatment and management mode consisting of surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, endocrine therapy and targeted therapy. In addition, only early detection, early diagnosis and early treatment can reduce the mortality rate of breast cancer. It is important to know that the cure rate of late-stage breast cancer is significantly reduced.
Does surgery always preserve breasts?
Whether or not you can conserve your breasts depends on the condition.
With the change of treatment concepts, especially the change of patients’ concepts, coupled with the continuous progress of systemic therapy, including endocrine and targeted therapy, the treatment concept of breast cancer has changed from the maximum tolerable treatment to the effective treatment with the least damage, which is reflected in the continuous increase of breast-conserving rate in breast cancer surgery. Whether breast conservation is possible or not, the following conditions should be considered:
First, it is a single lesion, not multiple lesions.
Second, the tumor is as far as possible from the central area of the nipple areola and preferably less than 3 cm in size.
Furthermore, the proportionality of the tumor to the breast should be considered. The smaller the tumor is in proportion to the breast, the higher the probability of successful breast conservation.
Another thing is whether the patient is suitable for radiotherapy after breast-conserving surgery, because radiotherapy after breast-conserving is especially important for reducing local recurrence. Radiotherapy after surgery can greatly reduce the risk of local recurrence, and doctors do not recommend breast-conserving surgery for patients who are not suitable for local radiotherapy.
Of course, the patient’s wishes are most important. Awareness of breast-conserving surgery and the requirements for their physical appearance will influence the patient’s decision.
If the patient’s condition is not suitable for breast-conserving surgery, it is advisable to consider breast reconstruction surgery (also called reconstructive surgery) to change the appearance of the breasts. The procedure is divided into one-stage reconstruction and two-stage reconstruction. Phase I reconstruction, also called immediate reconstruction, is performed immediately after total mastectomy. Phase II reconstruction is performed when the condition is relatively stable, one to two years after surgery. The main methods of reconstruction are autologous latissimus dorsi reconstruction and prosthetic reconstruction, with prosthetic reconstruction being the more commonly used. Which type of reconstruction is suitable needs to be communicated and chosen by the attending physician together with the patient.
Is there a high rate of breast cancer recurrence?
There are several factors that contribute to breast cancer recurrence.
First, breast cancer recurrence depends on the degree of malignancy of the breast cancer. The prognosis of hormone receptor-positive, HER-2-negative Luminal A breast cancer is relatively good, but there are some breast cancers with a high degree of malignancy and high rates of local recurrence and distant metastasis, such as triple-negative breast cancer.
Secondly, patients are also prone to recurrence if their breast cancer is already locally advanced when it is detected.
There is also the case of irregular treatment. This is an important cause of breast cancer recurrence. Many patients blindly choose the treatment plan when they are found in early stage, do not receive standardized comprehensive treatment, and lack postoperative adjuvant treatment, such as radiotherapy, chemotherapy, endocrine therapy, targeted therapy, etc. This will leave the possibility of tumor recurrence. This will leave a great possibility of tumor recurrence.
The patient’s own reasons will also affect the condition. If the patient has a good psychological state, can positively face the disease and maintain a good mental state and lifestyle, the recurrence rate will be greatly reduced.
Finally, being too young is also an unfavorable factor affecting the prognosis of breast cancer. Generally speaking, when the disease develops before the age of 40, the risk of recurrence is higher than that after the age of 40.