Barsky-Cancer cases

Question 1

What is EGFR sometimes referred to as?

Answer 1

HER1

Question 2

What is the difference between a screening mammogram and a regular mammogram?

Answer 2

Screening mammogram-> Radiation dose is minimal

Regular mammogram-> for diagnostic purposes so higher radiation.

Question 3

Does smoking cause breast cancer?

Answer 3

no

Question 4

Most breast cancer causes are (blank).

Answer 4

unknown

Question 5

(blank) is the presence of abnormal cells inside a milk duct in the breast. It is considered the earliest form of breast cancer. It is noninvasive, meaning it hasn’t spread out of the milk duct to invade other parts of the breast.

Answer 5

Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS)

Question 6

Does ductal carcinoma in situ precede invasive cancer?

Answer 6

yes!!!!

Question 7

Can the presence of microcalcifications be helpful in mammographic screening?

Answer 7

yes

Question 8

What is the main difference between DCIS and invasive breast cancer?

Answer 8

DCIS is non invasive. DCIS threatens the breast, invasive breast cancer threatens life.

Question 9

What is the differece between genetic and epigenetic changes?

Answer 9

Genetic- change in structure of DNA (mutation/loss/amplification/rearangmetn)
Epigenetic- change gene expression while mainting structure of DNA>

Question 10

Is the cause of invasion genetic or epigenetic?

Answer 10

it is not known

Question 11

What cells make up the basement membrane?

Answer 11

myoepithelial cells

Question 12

If you have a tumor in the breast, and it is spreading, where will it spread first? What needs to be done if you find cancer cells in the sentinal node?

Answer 12

sential node

axillary resection

Question 13

If you have a tumor in your breast and there is no tumor cells in the sentinal node what does this means?

Answer 13

it means that it hasnt spread to any part of the axilla

Question 14

T or F

node negative breast cancer does better than node positive breast cancer

Answer 14

T

Question 15

Does the presence of breast cancer in the lymph node change the stage and worsen the prognosis?

Answer 15

Yes :( cuz then we become node positive

Question 16

T or F

you can get lymph node metastasis without seeing lymphovascular invasion

Answer 16

T

Question 17

The greater the degree of metastasis (advanced stage) worse?

Answer 17

consist of more tumor cells and theres more heterogenity with more cell growth therefore more difficult to eradicate

Question 18

What is adjuvant chemotherapy?

Answer 18

given shortly after definitive surgical or radiotherapy without knowing if there are mets or micromets, its given at the time of the main therapy for the primary cancer

Question 19

What is neoadjuvant chemotherapy?

Answer 19

chemotherapy/radiotherapy that is given before the definitive surgical therapy.

Question 20

How can you predict metastases?

Answer 20

with blood draw-> look for circulating tumor cells

Question 21

Why do you ALWAYS give adjuvant therapy after primary surgical intervnetion?

Answer 21

because there are microscopic tumor cells that need to be killed and you cannot be for certain that you surgically removed them all!

Question 22

What does surgery remove?
radiotherapy?
Chemotherapy?

Answer 22

main mass
microscopic extensions
distant metastases

Question 23

What kind of marker is the estrogen receptor marker?

Answer 23

predictive marker, prognostic marker, tumor marker

Question 24

What kind of marker is Her2 neu?

Answer 24

predictive marker, prognostic marker, tumor marker

Question 25

T or F

patients with Her2 + do worse than HEr2-

Answer 25

T :(

Question 26

What is the worst type of breast cancer to have?

Answer 26

triple negative (basal)

Question 27

What is the best type of breast cancer to have?

Answer 27

luminal A

Question 28

can you predict how a cancer patient wil do?

Answer 28

no

Question 29

the biomarker is as important as the (blank)

Answer 29

therapy!