Breast Cancer Awareness

Breast Cancer Awareness and What Every Woman Should Know
Did you know cancer of the breast is the most common type of cause among most nations in the world? It is also the main culprit for causing the main number of deaths among cancer patients. The statistics are as high as 30%, of all female cancers.

What and exactly breast cancer works? Breast cancer is made up of abnormal cells that grow without normal controls. Thus, these overgrown or multiple new cells invade the normal breast tissue, causing the said cancer type. In 80% of the case, it occurs when breast cells that line the duct undergo change and become malignant. Malignant means cancerous growth, also known as tumour. Tumour can spread outside the breasts to other parts of the body. This characteristic is also known as 'metastic', in medical terms.

Currently, awareness campaigns are picking up at a rapid pace all globally. All levels of participation in 'mammographic' screening are much higher compared to recent decades. This has led to 40% of breast cancers are detected, even in the advanced stages. However, there is still lack of support from the insurance industry. This is especially a heavy burden to carry, for single mothers or low income earners.

Who is at risk? Simply, being a woman itself is a risk having to contract breast cancer. Although we know that men, too can have breast cancer, being the former more prominent in most cases. The good news for men is, a rate of 1% governs the number of males having breast cancer. For the females, do take action today if you suspect any lumps or bumps or abnormality on your breasts. Save your life today.

Calfred writes on various topics and provides useful tips about their relevant topics. You can also find him where he has a website which helps people find a zero gravity chair and golden lift chair. Never ever sit on another generic common chair anymore. Find out why at the website.

Breast Cancer - Diagnosed at 32

Breast Cancer - Diagnosed at 32, My Story Part 3 - Chemotherapy

In the previous articles, I discussed how I found out about the breast cancer and my mastectomy. Now, I start the chemotherapy and what no one told me would happen.

Choosing Chemo

I had no idea that you had to choose your own therapy. It seems that you are given several choices and you go from there. I chose the shortest round possible. I did not want to go through chemo and I wanted it all to end.

The Day the Hair Revolted

We all know that you lose your hair during chemo. What no one told me was how fast it would go. I learned from other breast cancer survivors that it is about three weeks later you lose your hair. For me, it was three weeks to the day.

One day, I got in the shower with all my hair and got out with none. It was like all my hair planned it out, waited for the right moment, and then decided to jump ship on the same day. It really was that fast. Before shower hair, after shower no hair.

In a few days, I lost everything, all my eyebrows, eyelashes, and even the hair on my arms and legs. For months, I did not have to shave since I did not have one stitch of hair anywhere on my body.

Side Effects Feel Like Pregnancy

During this whole time, my best friend was pregnant. It seemed we had the same symptoms. We both got nauseas over smells. We both had intense cravings for food. We both got tired. We even both had very odd mood swings. In fact, I had the mood swings for so long that I didn't even know I was having them.

I equate the moods to those of steroid rage. I was mad at so many people. I was mean and I really do not know why. My only guess is that the hormones were so off that it made me a bit crazy. After it was over, I felt horrible about some of the things I said and did. I even apologized to my friends and family.

I especially apologized to my husband, who I repeatedly asked for a divorce. He, however, was great about it. When I asked him to leave, he would just say, "You can't even get a glass of water. I am not going anywhere." I really do love him and glad he didn't leave.

The Final Surgery

My last surgery came months after I finished chemo. It was to take out the expanders and put in saline implants. I must say, I did get to customize my breast to the exact size I wanted. I went a little smaller than I was but I really like them now.

Again, I was flat on my back for a long time. Again, I could not move my arms and my husband had to do it all. Frankly, I am not sure how he did so much with no help. We lived on an island during the whole thing and our family was thousands of miles away. It was just the two of us and he did so much and took so much abuse. I cannot imagine how he did it.

The Recovery

In my final article, I will discuss how things went after the final surgery, the follow-ups and what life is like now.

Sherri has been writing articles for nearly 2 years. She is always up to something new. Come visit her latest site at http://bbqgrillparts.org/ where she shares her knowledge of the BBQ Burners

Breast Cancer - Diagnosed at 32

Breast Cancer - Diagnosed at 32, My Story Part 2 - The Mastectomy

In the last article, I discussed how I found out I had breast cancer. I talked about how my family and I reacted. In this article, I will discuss the treatments and how we all pulled through the year from Hell.

Next Step: Lymph Nodes
After having the lumpectomy and finding out it was cancer, my doctor told me we need to check my lymph nodes. First, I had to go get a simple scan to determine where they were. What she didn't tell me was I would need to lie perfectly still while they shoved a needle into my breast and squirted painful nuclear medicine in.

It seems, to locate the lymph nodes, someone has got to insert nuclear medicine into the site. Then they use a machine to see where the medicine goes. This takes a few minutes but is very freaky thing. Then, they mark you up for the surgery the next day.

The day of the surgery, I was lucky enough to discover, I had to get metal wire stuck into my breast so the surgeon could locate the lymph nodes. However, the whole thing was easy and I got to go home the same day.

No lymph node involvement for me.

Mastectomy vs. Radiation
My next big decision was to decide between mastectomy and radiation. I did some studying and found out that if I wanted reconstruction, then I would need a mastectomy. The thing with radiation was that if it didn't work, then I would not be able to have reconstruction later on.

I decided for a bilateral mastectomy because I wanted both sides to look the same. I was also going to have reconstruction at the same time. (Well, at least I thought I was. Turns out reconstruction is a year long process.)

Bilateral Mastectomy Here I Come
The big day came and I had both breasts removed and in their place expanders. It seems, when they take every little bit of your breast tissue, you need expanders put in. Expanders are hard silicone that stretches out the skin slowly.

Every two weeks, you go in and get a little more saline put into the expanders to stretch you out more. This is done by inserting a needle into the breast, through a port in the expander, and filling it up. This process hurts!

Anyway, I stayed in the hospital for 5 days. This is great considering some women have to go home the next day due to insurance policy. My doctor gave me an anesthesia thing to press when I felt pain. This meant I did not need pain medication in the hospital because it removed the pain completely. It was great.

Full Time Care Needed
The doctor told me I would need someone to take care of me when I got home. We just didn't know how much care that would be. I was stuck on my back not able to move my arms. My husband had to cook, clean and take care of me. In addition, he had to squeeze my drainage tubes to make sure I was draining properly.

If I was to move, it could cause infection. This is not something anyone wanted and was very difficult. However, the last surgery proved the hardest.

Chemotherapy Next
In the next article, I will discuss the chemotherapy and what no one warned us about.

Sherri has been writing articles for nearly 2 years. Come visit her latest website over at http://woodjewelryboxes.org/ which helps people find the best Mens Jewelry Boxes

Diagnosed at 32,

Breast Cancer - Diagnosed at 32, My Story Part 1 - Finding Out

It all started like any other day. I got up, went to work, and came home to my husband. We were sitting and watching a movie when it happened. It is a day I will never forget. With five little words, just an off-hand comment, changed my life forever. My husband turned and said, "Why is your shirt wet?" That is how it started.

The Initial Symptom

As weird as it sounds, I was not concerned about the bleeding. Yes, many women would be freaked out if they were bleeding from the nipple. Not me though. Ten years earlier, when I was 22, something similar happened.

Back when I was 22, I was taking weight lifting in college. During a bench press, my right nipple started bleeding. Then, I was freaked out. I went to the doctor and had test done and even had surgery. It was nothing. I had torn my ducts. No big deal.

Therefore, at 32, I was not concerned as I thought the same thing happened. I even went to work the next day and left a little early to head to the doctor.

The Doctor Visit

Immediately, I knew something was wrong. The doctor felt a lump and sent me for testing the same day. Then she gave me an option. I could either biopsy then or wait to Monday when they could do surgery and remove it. Either way, I needed to remove the lump because it was bleeding.

I decided to wait until Monday. It was not as if finding out I had cancer a day later would make a difference. So, we scheduled it for Monday.

On the way home, I made a joke to my husband. If you are familiar with Seinfeld, there was a scene were George thought he had cancer. He asks the doctor and the doctor says I don't know. George says the doctor is supposed to say, "Cancer? Get out of here!" I told my husband that when I asked, she said she didn't know. She should have said, "Cancer? Get out of here!"

The Biopsy

Monday, right before my biopsy, I got a call. My aunt, 64 years old, was diagnosed with breast cancer. Suddenly, I went from no family history of breast cancer to my aunt has breast cancer.

Then, I had the biopsy and lumpectomy done. The next day, I went to work still thinking everything was going to be fine. On the way home, I got the call. I knew immediately, I had cancer. If I didn't have cancer, the nurse would have called. When the doctor called herself, I knew.

Telling My Family

I had to call my dad. He would have to tell my mother. It would be hard for us all but they had to know. This was only one of two times I can ever remember my dad crying. It broke my heart that day and it breaks my heart still today to remember that call.

Surprisingly, my family sprung into action. I think it was the only thing they knew to do. The next thing I know, my brother is raising money. My brother-in-law is running in breast cancer races. He even had his fire department raise money by wearing pink shirts one day. The support was overwhelming.

More Surgeries to Come

In my next article, I will discuss the mastectomy and how that affected my family and me.

Sherri has been writing articles for nearly 2 years. Come visit her latest website over at http://charbroilgrillpartsreview.com which helps people find the best Char Broil Replacement Parts

Diagnosed at 32

Breast Cancer - Diagnosed at 32, My Story Part 3 - Recovery
In my previous articles, I discussed how I discovered the cancer, my initial treatments, and the chemo. Now, I will discuss how it all came to an end. It was a yearlong battle, and now I can look back and say what really happened.

Follow Up Visits Galore

You would think that after all the surgeries and chemo, I would be done. However, this was not the case. My reconstruction doctor alone wanted to see me every few days then every few weeks. I had to do exercises to make sure the reconstruction went right. It was time consuming and very demanding.

After Chemo Drugs

There are two main drugs given to women after breast cancer, Tamoxifen and Arimidex. I started off on Arimidex because years earlier I had a hysterectomy. However, I needed to get a bone scan because Arimidex could cause bone loss leading to osteoporosis. Turns out, I have severe osteoporosis and I was only 33! (I had a birthday since my original breast cancer diagnosis at 32.)

The oncologist switched me to Tamoxifen but couldn't take that either. It turns out it made my heart race. This meant no after chemo drugs for me.

I Quit

Against all the medical advice, I got tired of seeing doctors. I could not handle seeing another doctor one more time. So a little over a year since my original diagnosis, I quit seeing doctors. That was about 8 months ago.

Some question how I will know if the cancer comes back. Others ask me if I am concerned. Frankly, at this point, I do not care. If my cancer were to come back, it would automatically be stage 4. It would mean that it had metastasized and spread somewhere else.

I am now 34 years old and I know that I cannot do that again. If I get cancer again, so be it. I am not going to spend my life wondering if it will come back. I am not going to waste time going to doctors. It is my choice. It is not a popular choice and it is not a recommended choice. It is, however, my choice.

Final Thoughts

To anyone going through breast cancer, you will get through the treatment and your life will return.

To all those that know someone going through treatment, be patient. Remember, that after it was all over I felt bad about what I had said and done. My aunt, who was diagnosed two days before me, felt the same way. She got mad at my mom and did not speak to her through the whole treatment. After it was all over and she was back to normal, she called my mom.

When we go through this, it affects our heart, our mind, and our emotions. Please ride out the storm and wait for us on the other side.

Sherri has been writing articles for nearly 2 years. She is always up to something new. Come visit her latest site at http://womensworkoutclothes.org/ where she shares her knowledge of Womens Workout Clothes.

Breast Cancer Symptoms

Information on Breast Cancer Symptoms and Diagnosis

The main cause of the death among women is only cancer. The exact cause of the cancer is yet unknown. Usually it is diagnosed by the formation of lumps but it is not necessary that every lump may be cancerous only. Even the symptoms of the cancer are also not very clear. Usually there are no symptoms in the early breast cancer. But the look and the feel of the breast changes as there is a growth in the tumor. Some common changes include -

1. There is a lump or thickening in underarm area or near the breast.
2. There is a change in the shape or size of the breast.
3. The direction of the nipple turns inward in the breast.
4. Some discharge of fluid from the nipple. If the discharge is bloody then it is more risky.
5. Dimpling or puckering in the skin of the breast.
6. The skin on the breast becomes red, scaly or swollen skin. These symptoms may even appear on the nipple or areola (dark area of skin at the center of the breast).

If any person is suffering from any of these symptoms then he or she may immediately contact to an expert of cancer so that the problem can be diagnosed and treated properly ion time.

Diagnosis of Breast Cancer

You can also get yourself checked with doctor even if you are not suffering from breast cancer. Doctors after asking some questions about personal and family recommend some clinical breast exams and mammograms to detect the cancer in the early stage. If cancer is detected in early stage then it can be treated properly.

Clinical breast exam- in this process the health care provider checks your breasts. They may ask you to raise your arms over your head or press your hands against your hips. The health provider observes the changed shape and size of the breasts. He also checks your breast if there is any rash, dimpling or other abnormal signs. To check the fluid of the nipple the health experts squeeze the nipple.

Mammogram is related with an x-ray picture of tissue inside the breast. It gives the result before any person can feel the lump. So it is advisable to get regular screening mammograms especially after 40 for the detection of breast cancer at early stage.

Other imaging tests for the confirmation of breast cancer are ultrasound and MRI. These tests will help to get detailed pictures of breast tissue.

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