Breast cancer

Disease Description

Breast cancer (BC) is the most common type of oncology among women. Half of breast cancer cases occur in the female population without exposure to specific risk factors and are determined solely by sex and age (the older the woman, the higher the risk).

Symptoms indicating the need to seek diagnosis and treatment

Like most types of cancer, BC does not manifest itself in the early stages. Later, as the tumor grows, the following symptoms may appear:

• Lump in the breast (initially painless)
• Pathological nipple discharge upon compression (any discharge outside pregnancy and lactation requires thorough diagnosis)
• Change in the size and shape of the breast
• Nipple retraction or change in the color and shape of the areola
• “Orange peel” effect on the breast skin
• Redness, ulcerations on the breast skin

Diagnosis and treatment methods

Diagnosis

In addition to visual examination, to establish the diagnosis, a woman must undergo mammography (tomosynthesis), breast ultrasound, and MRI. Breast cancer is definitively diagnosed after performing a biopsy, in which both tissue and fluid from the breast are collected.

Treatment

The strategy depends on the stage and subtype of cancer, taking into account its spread beyond the breast. To minimize recurrences, oncologists at the best clinics worldwide combine treatment methods, using the following as the basis:

• Surgical: surgical removal of the tumor, which can be performed using the Da Vinci robot. To learn more about how robotic surgery is used in oncology and other specialties abroad, read our article “Robotic Surgery Abroad: Da Vinci, ROSA, ARTEMIS“
• Radiation therapy: to reduce the spread of cancer cells beyond the organ
• Hormone therapy: the use of hormones to reduce the activity of cancer cells
• Targeted therapy: blocking signaling pathways that stimulate cell division
• Chemotherapy: reducing the tumor using special drugs — cytostatics

In HER2-positive breast cancer, targeted therapy combined with chemotherapy can achieve significant results even in advanced disease. For more on this, read our article «When Cancer is Detected Late: Is Remission Possible?».

Innovations in world clinics

To assess the risk of breast cancer, Western doctors conduct genetic testing for hereditary oncology. An expanded gene test is used to check DNA for mutations. The main gene responsible for the development of breast tumors is BRCA 1. The study requires only blood or saliva samples. For more on how this kind of testing works and which other genetic factors (BRCA2, APC, TP53) affect cancer risk, see our article on cancer prevention.