Breast Cancer Symptoms- Recognize Them Early!

The figures concerning breast cancer are alarming. One woman in every nine will get the disease at some time in her life. There are more than 212,000 cases diagnosed in the USA each year. In Canada the figure is about 20,500, Australia 13,000 and in UK the figure is over 41,000. If you are a mature women or a young girl in your teens, it doesn’t matter! It is important for all females to know the symptoms of this dreaded disease. If you belong to the bolder gender, if you are a male even then continue reading. 1% of cases of breast cancer occur in men (around 300 per year in the UK).

Who is at risk?
It is overwhelmingly a female disease, but as mentioned earlier few men are also affected. It becomes more common in women as age increases. Over 80% of cases occur in women above the age of 50. Certain actions like taking a contraceptive pill increase the risk of breast cancer. Having a hormone replacement therapy significantly increases your risk somewhat more. Obesity and heavy drinking can also significantly increase the risk. If one or more relatives have had the disease, your risk of developing it also increases

Early detection is very important Currently, six out of every seven patients diagnosed at an early stage, are cured. However, if they are diagnosed when it has become advanced, the cure rate falls to about one in seven. Thus it is extremely important to catch it at an early stage and so it is even more important to know the symptoms.

Symptoms of Breast Cancer-
Usually, early breast cancer does not cause pain. As a matter of fact, when it first develops, there may be no symptoms at all. But as it grows, it can cause changes that women should watch for. Here are few symptoms one should be aware of-
• Itching in the armpit or around the breast region.
• Pink, red, or dark colored area (called erythematic) with texture similar to the skin of an orange (called peau d'orange).
• Ridges and thickened areas of the skin of nipple or breast.
• Appearance of a bruise that does not go away.
• Nipple getting inverted.
• Breast is warm to the touch.
• Pain in the breast (from a constant ache to stabbing pains).
• Change in texture as well as color of the aureole.
• Change in the shape or size of a breast.
• Dimpling of the breast skin.
• Swelling or a lump in the armpit.
• A discharge from the nipple.

On noticing any of these changes, a woman should see her doctor. However there is no need to panic as most often, it is not cancer, but only a doctor can tell for sure and it is best to get it confirmed.