What is breast cancer?

Breast cancer is a malignant tumor that starts from cells of the breast. A malignant tumor is a group of cancer cells that may grow into (invade) surrounding tissues or spread (metastasize) to distant areas of the body. The disease occurs almost entirely in women, but men can get it, too.

The normal breast

To understand breast cancer, it helps to have some basic knowledge about the normal structure of the breasts.

The female breast is made up mainly of lobules (milk-producing glands), ducts (tiny tubes that carry the milk from the lobules to the nipple), and stroma (fatty tissue and connective tissue surrounding the ducts and lobules, blood vessels, and lymphatic vessels).

Most breast cancers begin in the cells that line the ducts (ductal cancers). Some begin in the cells that line the lobules (lobular cancers), while a small number start in other tissues.

Breast cancer is the transformation of cells into a malignant tumor.  These tumors can become metastatic and spread or invasive and move into surrounding tissues.  Breast cancer cells continue to duplicate and replicate, which can create a tumor, which can subsequently spread to other parts of the body.  Metastatic tumors of the breast can spread to the lungs, liver and bone.  Diagnostic testing and biopsies, as necessary, should be performed in order to determine benign versus malignant tumors.

Breast cancer is a rapid, uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in one or both breasts. It is the most common type of cancer in women, but it can often be successfully treated when it is caught early.

While the number of women who have breast cancer increases with age, the disease can affect women in their 40s and, rarely, women in their 30s. Having a family history of breast cancer is an important risk factor, but most women who develop breast cancer do not have any known risk factors other than their age. Although rare, breast cancer can occur in men.

The most common symptom of breast cancer is a lump or thickening in the breast. Other symptoms include changes in the skin of the breast, spontaneous nipple discharge or bleeding, and scaling or crusting of the nipple.

Treatment for breast cancer depends on the stage of the breast cancer, whether nearby lymph nodes contain cancer cells, and how the cancer cells look under the microscope. Treatment usually includes surgery to remove the cancer. Radiation therapy, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, or targeted therapy may also be used to treat breast cancer.

 

In breast cancer, some cells begin growing abnormally. The cells divide more rapidly than healthy cells and may spread through the breast tissue to the lymph nodes or other parts of the body (metastasize). The most common type of breast cancer begins in the milk-producing ducts, but cancer may also occur in the lobules or in other breast tissue.

According to the National Cancer Institute (NCI), breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in American women. In the United States, it is estimated that 12% of American women will develop the disease and 3.5% will die from it. The incidence of breast cancer varies with age being very low in the twenties, gradually increasing and reaching a plateau at the age of 45 and then increasing dramatically after fifty. Breast cancer is diagnosed in women over 65 years 50% of the time, indicating the ongoing necessity for women to have yearly screenings.

Although rare, breast cancer may also occur in men. In men, breast cancer can occur at any age, but is most common between the ages of 60 to 70 years. For every 100 cases of breast cancer, less than 1 is found in men.

Breast cancer is considered a heterogeneous disease, meaning that it is a different disease in different women, a different disease in different age groups and has different cell populations within the tumor itself. Generally, breast cancer is a much more aggressive disease in younger women.

There are many different varieties of breast cancer. Some cancer cells are fast growing while others are slow. Some cancer cells are stimulated by the estrogen in the body while others result from an out-of-control oncogene (cancer gene). Treatment is based on the special characteristics of the breast cancer.

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