Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer after prostate cancer.\u00a0There are different types of breast cancer.\u00a0Most people get rid of the disease after treatment if breast cancer is detected early.\u00a0There are also treatments that can make you live a good life for a long time if the breast cancer is discovered later and has been able to spread.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the beginning, breast cancer usually gives no symptoms.\u00a0After a while, you may have one or more symptoms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A\u00a0lump in the chest or armpit can be breast cancer.\u00a0This is especially true if you are older and if the tuber is new and it has been a few weeks without it appearing to be about to disappear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lumps that disappear after a menstrual period are usually harmless. It is not possible to determine with your fingers whether a lump is a cancerous tumor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The breast may look different than it usually does. The skin or nipple may be retracted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Having pain is an unusual symptom of breast cancer<\/strong>.\u00a0It is much more common than it depends on the menstrual cycle.\u00a0The week before\u00a0menstruation, the breasts may feel swollen, tense and sore.\u00a0Such regular changes are harmless and usually present in both breasts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Other unusual symptoms are having a wound that does not heal or redness of the skin without injuring yourself.\u00a0The breast can flush, become swollen and sore if, for example, you breastfeed and get\u00a0milk compression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is also an unusual symptom that the skin on any part of the breast becomes thicker with small pits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fluid from the nipple is an unusual symptom of breast cancer<\/span>.\u00a0The liquid may be bloody, brownish or translucent watery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you think you have breast cancer,\u00a0contact a\u00a0health care\u00a0provider.\u00a0In some places, you can seek specialized outpatient care without the need for referral.\u00a0It may be, for example, at a breast clinic or the surgeon’s reception at a hospital.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You can contact many receptions by\u00a0logging in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You are offered an examination according to a standardized course of care if the doctor suspects that you have breast cancer. Standardized care is a way of organizing the investigation so that it goes as quickly as possible. Among other things, there are times set for the examinations you may need. The doctor writes a referral and tells you why you should be investigated, what it means and when you can be told if you have cancer or not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is often quick to get calls for examinations in a standardized course of care.\u00a0It is good if you are clear about how the staff most safely reach you so that you do not miss any time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A doctor knows the breasts and lymph nodes\u00a0in the armpit, at the clavicles and on the neck.\u00a0The doctor may ask you to answer various questions, for example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is also important to tell about previous hormone treatments that have ended.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A full\u00a0mammogram can be done from both breasts.\u00a0This means that more x-rays are taken than in the mammography health check called screening.\u00a0Women\u00a0between the ages of 40 and 74 are regularly called for such health checks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You are examined with\u00a0ultrasound if there is a lump or if the mammography images show any deviation.\u00a0You may also be examined with ultrasound if mammography images are difficult to assess because you have dense glandular tissue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A sample from the tuber can be examined under a microscope to see if there is cancer. Sometimes cells from the tubercle are sufficient, sometimes a slightly larger tissue sample is needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You may need to investigate more if you have cancer and the cancerous tumor is large or if there is evidence that cancer has spread to the lymph nodes in the armpit.\u00a0The studies can show if cancer has spread to other parts of the body as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is common to need to be examined with\u00a0computed tomography.\u00a0You may also need to have your liver examined with\u00a0ultrasound.\u00a0The skeleton may also need to be examined.\u00a0It is done with a\u00a0magnetic camera\u00a0or with skeleton scintigraphy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In skeletal scintigraphy, a small dose of a radioactive tracer is injected into the blood.\u00a0The tracer searches for areas in the skeleton where some type of injury may exist, for example, due to cancer.\u00a0It is visible when you are examined with a special camera called a gamma camera.\u00a0The radioactive tracer disappears quickly from the body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A group of different specialists advises each other on which treatment for breast cancer<\/strong> will be best for you based on your research results.\u00a0Your doctor will tell you what treatment the specialists recommend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What treatment you can receive depends, among other things, on what kind of breast cancer you have, what stage it is in and how you feel otherwise.\u00a0In this chapter, you can read more about the different treatments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Most people who get breast cancer are operated on. Sometimes a part of the breast is operated on, other times the entire breast needs to be removed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Most breast cancer<\/strong> surgery is performed simultaneously in the armpit.\u00a0There are lymph nodes that need to be examined.\u00a0The lymph nodes are removed if cancer has spread there.\u00a0It is called axillary evacuation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You will be treated with medication before surgery if the cancer tumor needs to shrink. It can be done with cytostatic drugs that are sometimes combined with targeted drugs. Sometimes the cancer tumor can shrink with drugs that affect your hormones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is more common to receive treatment for breast cancer<\/em> with drugs after surgery.\u00a0The purpose is to remove cancer cells that may be left in the body.\u00a0Treatment can reduce the risk of relapse and increase the chance of you getting rid of the disease.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cytostatic drugs are a group of drugs that can inhibit cancer cells in different ways.\u00a0You get cytostatic drugs in cures.\u00a0The most common is to get six courses of cytostatics with a three-week break between the courses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cytostatic drugs are usually given as a drop directly into the blood.\u00a0It is common to get a combination of different cytostatic drugs as it usually gives a better effect.\u00a0Some common drugs are those containing epirubicin, doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, 5-FU, docetaxel or paclitaxel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The treatment with cytostatic drugs can make you sensitive to infections, feel sick or get dry mucous membranes. Some suffer from pain in the body or numbness in the fingers and toes. There are good drugs to both prevent and mitigate most of the side effects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is common for the hair to fall off but it almost always comes back after the treatment. You can get a wig that you try out before treatment begins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The treatment can also make you feel tired.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is common for the hormone estrogen to cause breast cancer to grow.\u00a0There are drugs that target the hormone estrogen in various ways, so-called anti-hormonal drugs:<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhen and where should I seek care?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Investigations<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The doctor feels on the breasts and lymph nodes<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Mammography<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Ultrasonography<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Cell samples and tissue samples<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Surveys to see if cancer has spread<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Treatment for Breast Cancer<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The breast is operated on<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The armpit is also operated<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Drugs for breast cancer<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Drugs with cytostatic drugs<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Drugs for breast cancer affected by hormones<\/h4>\n\n\n\n