The reason is not far-fetched going by the number of people afflicted by the disease. According to the WHO,
“There are about 1.38 million new cases and 458 000 deaths from breast cancer each year. The disease is also the most by far the most common cancer in women worldwide, both in the developed and developing countries.
“Currently, there is not sufficient knowledge on the causes of breast cancer, therefore, early detection of the disease remains the cornerstone of breast cancer control. When breast cancer is detected early, and if adequate diagnosis and treatment are available, there is a good chance that breast cancer can be cured. If detected late, however, curative treatment is often no longer an option. In such cases, palliative care to relieve the suffering of patients and their families is needed.”
In Nigeria, the statistics on the disease incidence and prevalence is limited, however, a report credited to WHO in the Vanguard states that over 100,000 Nigerians are diagnosed with cancer annually, of which 80,000 die from the disease.
Take a look at the image below. It is the 2014 Nigeria country profile for cancer according to the WHO. It can be seen that breast cancer accounted for
[bctt tweet=”Breast Cancer Awareness Month! Did you know that breast cancer accounts for 34.2% of all cancer diagnosed in women in Nigeria? ” username=”sidomex”]
Furthermore, according to WHO, 27,304 people were diagnosed with breast cancer in Nigeria in 2014.
From the ongoing, it is easy to see the need for raising awareness of breast cancer. So, we have gathered the available information to help explain breast cancer, types, causes, treatment and prevention strategies. It is our sincere hope that you would find value in this article and that you would be spurred to taking actions to help fight the disease.
Breast Cancer Explained
Cancer is a cell disease and our cells are our body’s building block. Our cells grow, multiply and die in an orderly manner, they help us to replace worn-out tissues and also to heal injuries. However, sometimes, our cells do not grow and die in the normal way. When this happens, the cells begin to form a tumour, in the breast, this tumour appears on an X-ray or can be felt as a lump.
Breast cancer begins when the breast cells grow out of control, the cancer cells get into the blood or lymph and is carried into the breasts. The lymph nodes are bean-like in nature, designed to protect our bodies against diseases and infection. Thes lymph nodes can be found almost everywhere in our bodies, but the ones that carry cancer cells to the breast can be found either in the armpit (majorly) or the sternum (breastbone) few times.
Changes in the DNA can cause normal breast cells to become cancerous. Some DNA changes are inherited and can greatly increase the risk of getting breast cancer. Cancer can also start with other lifestyle-related risk factors, such as what you eat, how much you exercise, hormones. All these can increase the chances of developing breast cancer (no research has been able to fully explain exactly how some of these risk factors cause normal cells to become cancer). Breast cancers can begin in any part of the breast: the ducts, the lobules, or in some cases, the tissue in between.
Types of Breast Cancer
There are different types of breast cancer, but they fall under two major types: invasive and non-invasive breast cancer.
Ductal Carcinoma In Situ (DCIS)
Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is a non-invasive breast cancer type. Ductal means that it (cancer) starts inside the milk ducts, carcinoma means cancer that starts in the skin or other tissues that covers the internal organs, and In situ means “in its original place. DCIS is called “non-invasive” because it hasn’t spread beyond the milk duct. DCIS is not malignant or life-threatening, but having DCIS can increase the risk of developing an invasive breast cancer.
If diagnosed with DCIS, there is a higher risk for cancer to come back, or there can be the development of new breast cancer than a person who has never had breast cancer before. After an initial diagnosis of DCIS, recurrences may occur between 5-10 years and there is a 30% chance of this recurrence. It is advised that a lumpectomy (breast-conserving surgery) be done alongside radiation (this is to reduce the risk of recurrence in the future), a mastectomy (removal of the breasts) or hormonal therapy after a lumpectomy as treatment. Chemotherapy is not really needed for DCIS. Generally, DCIS have no signs and symptoms, only a small amount of people may have a lump or discharge from the nipple.
Invasive Ductal Carcinoma (IDC)
Invasive ductal carcinoma also known as infiltrating ductal carcinoma is the most common type of breast cancer in women. Most of the breast cancers are IDC. This means that cancer has “invaded” or spread to the surrounding breast tissues, it refers to cancer that has broken through the walls of the milk duct and has started to invade the tissues of the breast. Over time, IDC can spread to the lymph nodes and other areas of the body.
Although invasive ductal carcinoma can affect women at any age (18 reasonably), it is more common as women grow older. IDC can also affect men.
Symptoms of Breast Cancer
Symptoms of breast cancer are not the same for all women, it usually starts from the breast region with thickened tissues or lump in the breasts and sometimes under the armpit. Some of the reported symptoms include: having pains under the arm or breasts that do not change with the monthly cycle, redness of the skin of the breast, rashes around the nipples, discharge (blood-like) from the nipple, having an inverted nipple, a sudden change in the size or shape of the breast, peeling on the breast or nipple. These symptoms of breast cancer also vary among women. Most lumps noticed are not cancerous, but if you notice any, it is best to it checked by a doctor.
Stages of Breast Cancer
There are four major stages of breast cancer; Stages zero to four (0-4). The particular stage of breast cancer is determined by cancer’s characteristics, which help to determine the outcome of the disease and the possible trials and treatment that will be good for the patient. Stage IV (4) cancers describe invasive cancers that have already spread throughout other parts of the body, while the stage 0 cancer is used to describe non-invasive cancers that are, cancers that stay in their original location.
Stage 0
Stage 0 as stated above is used to describe cancers such as DCIS. In this stage, there is no evidence of cancer cells breaking out of the part of the breast in which they started, or getting through to or invading other normal tissue or other parts of the body.
Stage I
Stage I describes cancer cells that are already breaking through normal tissues surrounding the breast (invasive breast cancer). Stage I is divided into stages IA and IB. In stage IA the tumour measures up to 2 centimetres (cm) and cancer have not spread outside the breasts and no lymph nodes are yet involved while in stage 1B, there is no tumour yet in the breast, instead, smaller groups of cancer cells larger than 0.2 millimetres (mm) but not larger than 2 mm are found in the lymph nodes. Sometimes a tumour may be found in the breast.
Microscopic invasion is possible in stage I breast cancer. In microscopic invasion, the cancer cells have just started to invade the tissue outside the lining of the duct or lobule, but the invading cancer cells can’t measure more.
Stage II
This stage is divided into 2 major categories: IIA & IIB.
Stage IIA explains invasive breast cancer where no tumour can be found in the breast but can be found in 1 to 3 axillary lymph nodes under the arm or near the breastbone, the tumour has spread to the axillary lymph nodes, but if the cancer tumour measures between 2-5cm and has not spread to the lymph nodes or other parts of the body away from the breast or if a tumour is hormone-receptor-positive. This can be classified as stage IIA cancer.
Stage IIB describes invasive breast cancer where a tumour is larger than 2cm but not larger than 5cm or small groups of breast cancer cells larger than 0.2mm but not larger than 2mm are found in the lymph nodes, the tumour has spread to 1 to 3 axillary lymph nodes near the breastbone, the tumour is larger than 5 cm but has not spread to the axillary lymph nodes. This can be said to be or classified as stageIIB cancer.
Stage III
Stage III is divided into IIIA, IIIB & IIIC.
Stage IIIA describes invasive breast cancer in which either no tumour is found in the breast, or a tumour may be any size, the tumour is larger than 5cm small groups of breast cancer cells that are larger than 0.2mm but not larger than 2mm are found in the lymph nodes, a tumour is larger than 5cm and cancer has spread to 1-3 axillary lymph nodes or to the lymph nodes near the breastbone.
Stage IIIB describes invasive breast cancer in where a tumour can be any size and has spread to the chest wall and skin of the breast, and has also caused swelling or ulcer, may have spread to up to 9 axillary lymph nodes near the breastbone.
Inflammatory breast cancer is considered at least stage IIIB. Features of inflammatory breast cancer include:
- reddening of a large part of the breast skin.
- the breast feels warm and may be swollen at times.
- cancer cells have spread to the lymph nodes and may be found in the skin too.
Stage IIIC describes invasive breast cancer where there may not be any sign of cancer in the breast. If there is a tumour in the breast, it could be any size and may have spread to the chest wall & the skin of the breast, to lymph nodes above or below the collarbone or the lymph nodes near the breastbone.
