Breast Cancer Flashcards
what is breast cancer
malignancy of breast tissue
whats the most common type of breast cancer
invasive ductal carcinoma
aetiology
genetics (BRCA-1 and BRCA-2 genes)
environmental factors (smoking, alcohol, diet etc.)
risk factors
age,
prolonged exposure to oestrogen due to Nulliparity (not having kids) Early menarche Late menopause Obesity COCP HRT)
Family history of breast cancer
epidemiology of breast cancer
99% of cases women, 1% men
most common cancer diagnosis among women
peak incidence (40-70 years)
presenting symptoms
breast lump (usually painless)
changes in breast shape,
nipple discharge
axillary lump
metastatic disease symptoms
metastatic disease symptoms
weight loss,
bone pain
paraneoplastic syndromes
signs on physical examination
skin tethering, nipple changes (inversion etc)
pagets disease of nipple (eczema-like hardening on nipple)
appropriate investigations for breast cancer
triple assessment; clinical examination, imaging and tissue diagnosis
sentinel lymph node biopsy
A radioactive tracer is injected into the tumour and a scan identifies the sentinel lymph node
This node is then biopsied to check the extend of spread
what do you use for staging breast cancer
CXR, liver ultrasound and CT
bloods investigations with breast cancer
FBC, U&E’s, calcium, bone profile, LFT’s and ESR
treatment
endocrine based therapy and supportive care
prognosis
In general, women with a long disease-free interval between primary diagnosis and metastatic disease, a hormone receptor-positivity, a favourable response to prior therapy, a bone and/or soft tissue-only disease, limited sites and bulk of disease, and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negativity live longer than those with the opposite characteristics
