Treatment of Breast Cancer

The treatment of breast cancer will depend on:

• The patient’s age, general health status
• The stage of the cancer
• The presence of inherited cancer genes such as BRCA1 or BRCA2

Breast cancer is treated using the following methods

1. surgery:surgery is done to remove the lump found in the breast, or it may be done to remove the entire breast. The removal of a breast tumour and the surrounding tissues is known as lumpectomy. if the entire breast is cut of, it is known as a mastectomy. Re-constructive surgery of the breast can be done if a woman has undergone mastectomy. 

2 chemotherapy

Chemotherapy is the use of drugs to kill cancer cells, or to arrest their growth. Chemotherapy can be given to a patient before surgery. this is known as neoadjuvant chemotherapy. it is given before surgery to shrink a tumour. Chemotherapy can also be given to patients after surgery. When chemotherapy is given after surgery, it is known as adjuvant chemotherapy.

The side effects of chemotherapy will depend on the dose of chemotherapy, its schedule,  the drugs used and the health status of the individual. These side effects include:

• Hair loss
• nausea
• vomiting
• loss of appetite
• heart damage
• secondary cancers.

3 Radiation

Radiation uses high energy x-rays or other particles to kill the cancer cells.  Some of the side effects of radiation include:

• skin hyper pigmentation
• burning of the skin which is sometimes accompanied with blisters
• pneumonitis
• fatigue
• swelling of the radiated breast

4 Hormone therapy

This is used for cancer cells that grow in the presence of hormones such as estrogen and progesterone. These drugs block estrogen or progesterone from binding to breast cancer cells that grow in the presence of these hormones. An example of a hormone therapy drug is Tamoxiphen. 

For a detailed reading on the treatment of breast cancer, see the sources below:

Sources:

National Cancer Institute

NHS Choices