If you ask the question, “Which is the most deadly disease in the world?” to people, many of them will answer cancer. Rightfully so, cancer has been one of the most feared diseases of late. Among the different types of cancer, a number of breast cancer patients has particularly grown in the past few years. According to the WHO, 2.3 million women were diagnosed with cancer in 2020, accounting for 685,000 deaths globally. While breast cancer treatments are getting better with time, there is still a section of the population that is not aware of the disease and its aftereffects. If you are also one of them, this blog “Top 10 Facts about Breast Cancer Treatment and Prevention” is for you.
Here are the Top 10 Facts About Breast Cancer Treatment and Prevention;
1. What questions should a patient who has just been diagnosed with breast cancer ask their physician?
A person who has been diagnosed with breast cancer treatment and prevention may have several crucial questions. First, it is helpful to know who makes up your care team, including your physicians, staff, and individuals to whom you may direct queries. There is also information on the sickness itself. What kind of breast cancer was diagnosed? Does it solely affect the breast, or has it spread to lymph nodes or other areas of the body?
It is also useful to know the kind of receptors on the surface of the cancer cells since these proteins have an effect on the response to certain therapies. There are also practical questions. What exams or examinations are required before beginning treatment? What therapies are suggested, and for what purpose? How do the order and timing of the treatments appear? If surgery is required, what surgical choices are available, and what therapies are administered before and after surgery?
2. What should a patient be aware of if they have a history of breast cancer in their family?
It is helpful to know who in their family has been diagnosed with breast cancer treatment and prevention and how old they were at the time. If they have had genetic testing, it is useful to know what was examined and the findings. If there is a family history of other malignancies, such as ovarian or pancreatic cancer, this information may be crucial.
3. Can you discuss the many cancer therapy choices available today and how they vary by cancer stage?
Breast cancer treatment and prevention must be individualized and dependent on several variables. Collaboration between surgeons, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, nurses, and other members of the patient’s care team is necessary for optimal treatment. Each patient should discuss with their doctor the best possible therapy choice for them.
The therapy of cancer in its early stages relies on the tumor’s molecular characteristics. The majority of early-stage instances are treated surgically, often by mastectomy or breast cancer-conserving surgery. The selection of radiation and systemic therapy is often based on the molecular characteristics of the malignancy as well as the patient’s baseline health and preferences.
Systemic treatments include chemotherapy, which inhibits rapidly dividing cells, and endocrine therapy, which targets hormone receptors found on the cell surfaces of some malignancies. Systemic treatments also include targeted therapy, which targets proteins that cause the development of specific forms of cancer, and immunotherapy, which uses the body’s immune system to fight cancer.
4. Are there any recent advances in the detection or treatment of breast cancer that offer hope for patients?
There have been several advances in breast cancer treatment and prevention. Currently, digital tomosynthesis is used by a number of diagnostic centers. This kind of digital mammography employs a mobile X-ray source and a digital detector. Several studies have demonstrated that the new digital breast tomosynthesis offers minor gains in recall rates and cancer detection compared to digital mammography.
For early-stage malignancies, both surgery and radiation treatments have been improved. This results in both improved cancer outcomes and improved cosmetic outcomes. Incorporating the receptor status of the tumor, its stage, and, in certain circumstances, gene expression analysis or other molecular aspects has allowed for the improvement of systemic therapy.
Those at the greatest risk may now get effective medicines, and those at the lowest risk can avoid the toxicity of unneeded therapy. In the context of advanced malignancies, novel drugs that target particular molecular characteristics of the tumor have been created. These inhibit the development of cancer and often prolong and enhance the quality of life.
5. How likely is a patient to overcome breast cancer?
This depends on the kind of cancer, its stage, and its molecular characteristics. Stage 0 cancer, for example, is virtually always curable. In contrast, stage IV cancer is incurable but manageable and may enable a patient to survive for years with metastatic breast cancer treatment and prevention.
There is a spectrum of malignancies between these two extremes, but with today’s medicines, the vast majority of persons with stages I to III cancer may be cured.
- Cancer therapy
- Breast cancer tests
6. When should women get breast cancer screening?
Most major expert organizations suggest screening for women aged 50 to 74 with average risk. For forty-year-old women at average risk in the United States, joint decision-making between physician and patient is encouraged.
The clinical staff at Wolters Kluwer’s UpToDate recommends the same screening technique for moderate-risk and average-risk women breast cancer treatment and prevention. The moderate-risk category consists of women having a 10-15% lifetime probability of developing breast cancer. This comprises the majority of women with a history of breast cancer in a first-degree relative but no recognized hereditary condition.
7. What do we know about the influence of COVID-19 on the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer? How many screenings did not occur?
Delays in cancer screening may have had an effect on future cancer mortality via increased rates of late-stage diagnosis and treatment delays. A comprehensive evaluation published in JAMA Oncology revealed that the number of breast cancer treatment and prevention screening tests conducted between January and October 2020 decreased by 46.7% compared to the period before the pandemic.
Another research published in the Journal of the American College of Radiology (JACR) revealed a reduction of almost two-thirds during the COVID peak months.
8. How does COVID-19 continue to impair breast cancer tests, and what repercussions remain?
The previously cited JACR analysis revealed a rise in screening rates between the spring of 2021 and 2020. The number of screenings has risen to 85 percent of pre-pandemic levels, and I anticipate this trend to continue. However, delays will be felt for many years to come. Due to disturbances during the first six months of the epidemic, research published in the JNCI in November predicted 2,500 extra breast cancer deaths in the United States by 2030.
9. What would you want patients who are still hesitant or have skipped prescribed mammography tests to know?
Screening for breast cancer treatment and prevention is critical for early detection and prompt treatment. People are concerned about false-positive results after receiving a COVID vaccination. Approximately 15% of individuals who got a COVID immunization had axillary (armpit) swelling or pain. It is also common practice to inquire about a patient’s vaccination history prior to a mammogram. To avoid these false-positive results, patients should, wherever feasible, choose to have a vaccination booster following their mammography.
Alternatively, vaccination may be administered four to six weeks before mammography. Exposure concerns in healthcare settings may also be of concern. The good news is that the dangers of exposure to COVID-19 and serious disease have dropped substantially. Continual masking, immunization mandates for healthcare professionals, and overall vaccination rates have played a significant influence in this.
10. What role may technology play in breast cancer treatment and prevention?
Clinical decision support (CDS) technology may give physicians evidence-based information at the point of care, aiding in breast cancer treatment and prevention and assisting in the detection of early warning signals. Clinicians may make judgments with better certainty and precision, which improves patient outcomes.
Bottom Line
It is a huge positive that we have progressed a lot in terms of cancer prevention and treatment over the past few years, unlike a few years ago when the word ‘cancer’ was enough to instill fear in the minds of people. Technology has evolved, and so has cancer awareness among folks. We hope this blog gave you helpful insights about breast cancer treatment and prevention. Stay informed by reading our latest blogs on thelifesciencesmagazine.com.
