What is breast cancer? How to do breast self examination?
Cancer starts when the cells in a part of the body start to grow out of control. The growth of a cancer cell is different from normal cell growth. Cancer cells do not die but they continue to grow and form new, abnormal cells. They can harm other tissues also. The normal cells become cancer cells when there is a damage to DNA. Most cases, cancer cells can become tumor. Some cancers, like leukemia, rarely form tumors.Cancer cells spread to other parts also. It does not matter where does cancer spread, they are always named from where it started. Not all tumors are cancers.
A simple Breast Self Examination (BSE) can be done to detect any chances of breast problems like lumps or change in appearance. The breast self examination should be done about a week after your periods end. Breast self-exam should be performed on the same day each month.
Breast self examination involves the following steps :
- Use left hand for right breast and right hand for left breast.
- Remove all your clothes and stand in front of mirror.
- Observe the size, shape, color, symmetry and texture of your breasts.
- Observe for any kind of discharge or puckering of the nipple.
- Observe for sores or scaly skin.
- Examine the breasts in four different postures.
- First, both arms folded down.
- Second, both arms over the head and check for any swelling or puckering of the skin.
- Third, both arms on your hips and press firmly to flex your chest muscles.
- Fourth, bent forward to examine each breast for change in outline or dimpling of the skin.
- Lie down, check the entire right breast area with your left hand. Make small circles and follow an up and down pattern with light, medium and firm pressure over the area of the breast.
- Feel the breast surface with second, third and fourth fingers of the hand making circular motions.
- Also, squeeze the nipple for any kind of discharge.
- Repeat the same steps with left breast but with right hand.
- During shower, examine the breast tissue in the underarms.
- Feel for lumps under and along the top of the collar bone.
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Categories: Body, Breast, Breast Cancer, Cancer, Disease, Disorder, Tissues, Tumor Tags: abnormal, Benign, Body, Breast Cancer, Breast Self Examination, Cancer, Cells, Color, Examination, growth, Inflammation, Lumps, Malignant, Nipples, Shape, Size, Swelling, Texture, Tissues
What are the risk factors of the colorectal cancer? – Part II
Inherited syndromes :
About 5% to 10% of humans who advance colorectal blight expect to have affiliated gene defects (mutations) that could cause the disease. Often, these defects advance to blight that occurs at an adolescent age than is common. Identifying families with these affiliated syndromes is important because it lets doctors acclaim specific steps, such as screening and added antitoxin measures if the person is younger.
Several types of blight can be affiliated with these syndromes, so it’s important to analysis your ancestors medical history not just for colon blight and polyps, but as well for any added blazon of cancer. While blight in first-degree ancestors is a matter of concern, any history of blight in added abroad ancestors is as well important. This includes aunts, uncles, grandparents, nieces, nephews, and cousins. They may account from a biogenetic counselling to analyze their ancestors medical timberline to see how acceptable it is that they accept an ancestors blight affection and an altercation about whether or not gene testing is appropriate for them.
There are lot of accepted affiliated syndromes affiliated with colorectal cancers are familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) and ancestral non-polyposis colorectal blight (HNPCC).
Familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP): FAP is acquired by changes (mutations) in the APC gene that a human being inherits from his or her parents. About 1% of all colorectal cancers are due to FAP.
People with FAP advance hundreds of polyps in their colon and rectum, usually in their adolescence or aboriginal adulthood. By age 40, humans with this ataxia will develop blight if antitoxin anaplasty (removing the colon) is not done.
Gardner affection is a blazon of FAP that as well has amiable (non-cancerous) tumors of the skin, bendable affiliation tissue, and bones.
Hereditary non-polyposis colon blight (HNPCC): HNPCC, as well accepted as Lynch syndrome, accounts for about 3% to 5% of all colorectal cancers. HNPCC can be acquired by affiliated changes in an amount of altered genes that commonly advice adjustment DNA damage.
The cancers in this affection advance if humans are almost young, although not as adolescent as in FAP. Humans with HNPCC may as well accept polyps, but they alone accept a few, not hundreds as in FAP. The lifetime accident of colorectal blight in humans with this action may be as top as 80%.
Women with this action accept an actual top accident of developing blight of the endometrial (lining of the uterus). Other cancers affiliated with HNPCC cover blight of the ovary, stomach, baby bowel, pancreas, kidney, brain, ureters (tubes that backpack urine from the kidneys to the bladder), and acerbity duct.
Turcot syndrome:
This is an attenuate affiliated action in which humans are at added accident of adenomatous polyps and colorectal cancer, as able-bodied as academician tumors. There are in fact 2 types of Turcot syndrome:
- One can be acquired by gene changes agnate to those apparent in FAP, in which cases the academician tumors are medulloblastomas.
- The added can as well be acquired by gene changes agnate to those apparent in HNPCC, in which cases the academician tumors are glioblastomas.
Peutz-Jeghers syndrome:
Humans with this attenuate affiliated action tend to accept freckles about the aperture and an appropriate blazon of polyp in their digestive tracts (called hamartomas). They are at abundantly added accident for colorectal cancer, as able-bodied as several added cancers, which usually arise at a adolescent than accustomed age. This affection is acquired by mutations in the gene STK1.
MUTYH-associated polyposis:
Humans with this affection advance colon polyps which will become annihilative if the colon is not removed. They as well accept an added accident of cancers of the baby civil skin, ovary, and bladder. This affection is acquired by mutations in the gene MUTYH.
Categories: Body, Cancer, Colon, Colorectal cancer, Digestive, growth, health, Healthy, Rectum Tags: Accident, Benign, Blight, Cancer, Cells, Colon, Colorectal Cancer, Defects, digestion, Genes, health, Hereditary, Intestines, Malignant, Polyps, Rectum, Risk Factors, stomach, Syndromes, Tissues, Turcot syndrome
