Breast cancer is turning to be one of the top killer women in the world. This kind of cancerous tumor is attacking breast tissue of woman. A disease in which abnormal cells in the breast divide and multiply in an uncontrolled fashion. The cells can invade nearby tissue and can spread through the bloodstream and lymphatic system to others part of the body and start to kill the organ one by one. By giving a breast cancer treatment will decrease the number of population who has this illness. Because so many different women have contracted breast cancer, many forms of treatment have been developed to attend to their specific needs.
New research and development in the area of breast cancer allow Americans several treatment options instead of the outdated surgery method. Breast cancer treatment gives some options to choose: “Treatment options for recurrent breast cancer: 1. Surgery (radical or modified radical mastectomy, radiation therapy, or both. 2. Systematic chemotherapy or hormone therapy. 3. A clinical trial of trastuzumab (Herceptin) combined with systemic chemotherapy”(Natl. Cancer Institute). The type of breast cancer decides which treatment can be healing the disease.
Moreover, breast cancer treatment divided by two types of therapy: “Any anti-cancer treatment used after surgery is called ADJUVANT THERAPY. Any such treatment before surgery to shrink a large tumor is called NEOADJUVANT THERAPY”(“Breast Cancer Update, part I,”). Many people think that because of breast cancer is unusual disease, a lot of different surgical procedure offered, but no: The treatment of breast cancer is less standardized than that of many other illness. Because they know this, some patients believe that there are many different surgical procedures to choose among. In fact, there are only two: 1.
The breast is conserved in a procedure commonly known as lumpectomy; this is the almost always followed by radiation therapy and sometimes by hormone and/or chemotherapy. 2. The breast is removed in an operation called mastectomy. Breast reconstruction may be used after mastectomy, either immediately or at later date, and systemic treatment may also be used. (Hirshaut and Pressman 100) Surgical procedures explain which treatment can be used for specific type of breast cancer. That makes people take a good choice for their treatment. One option of breast cancer treatment could be surgery.
The type of the primary treatment for breast cancer, a surgery, depends upon: “1. The size and location of the breast lump or tumor. 2. The type and stage of the breast cancer (If the cancer has spread within the breast or has spread outside of the breast to the lymph nodes, or to other parts of the body). 3. The size of the breast. 4. The woman’s preference”(OHSU 1). Furthermore, surgery divided by two, breast-conserving surgery and mastectomy. Breast-conserving surgery use Lumpectomy and Partial mastectomy: “Breast-conserving surgery, includes the following:1.
Lumpectomy: Surgery to remove a tumor (lump) and a small amount of normal tissue around it. 2. Partial mastectomy: Surgery to remove the part of the breast that has cancer and some normal tissue around it. This procedure is also called a segmental mastectomy”(National Cancer Institute). And Mastetcomy divided into three types of surgery, Total Mastetcomy: “Total mastectomy: Surgery to remove the whole breast that has cancer. This procedure is also called a simple mastectomy. Some of the lymph nodes under the arm may be removed for biopsy at the same time as the breast surgery or after.
This is done through a separate incision”(National Cancer Institute), Modified radical mastectomy: “Modified radical mastectomy: Surgery to remove the whole breast that has cancer, many of the lymph nodes under the arm, the lining over the chest muscles, and sometimes, part of the chest wall muscles”(National cancer Institute), and radical Mastetcomy: “Radical mastectomy: Surgery to remove the breast that has cancer, chest wall muscles under the breast, and all of the lymph nodes under the arm. This procedure is sometimes called a Halsted radical mastectomy”(National. Cancer Institute).
Surgery could be choices that give a chance to destroy the breast cancer. The first therapy treatment, radiation: “Radiation is local treatment administered by specialized physicians known as radiation oncologist. It is given with a large machine called a linear accelerator that converts radioactive particles into a high-energy radiation beam that is used to treat a specific, well-defined area of your body”(Link, Forsthoff, and Waisman 81). Radiation puts cancer cells into death cycle. But radiation still have own side effect: “The skin around the area receiving radiation may begin to look tanned or sunburned” (Pat and Levine 100-01).
Beside the skin will look tanned, the daily trip to the hospital or cancer center can be tiring, and if the patient tired, the body generally weak. Moreover, if the doctor does radiation after surgery, the purpose is to kill cancer cell that may have been left behind. It is depends on the margin involvement, and if the doctor does not sure about the margin: “However, if your team has some question in your case about margin involvement or if there is some component of in situ breast cancer, they may decide to give an extra amount of radiation, called a boost, to the tumor area”(Link, Forsthoff and Waisman 84).
Two ways to do the giving boost, first: “The most common involves the linear accelerator and consist of 5 to 10 additional radiation treatments to the local surgical area”(Link, Forsthoff and Waisman 84). And the second: “The boost is administered externally over 5 to 10 sessions in a very similar manner to the way radiation is given with the linear accelerator”(Link, Forsthoff and Waisman 84). Radiation could be a primary treatment but also it could be the second treatment after doing the surgery to kill the cancer cell that may have been left.
The other therapy, chemotherapy, a chemical treatment by using drugs. To use chemotherapy its depends on: “Chemotherapy administered to women with localized breast cancer is given to kill possible microscopic cancer cells that may have reached the systemic circulation” (Link, Forsthoff, and Waisman 88-9). The treatment of cancer using drugs formulated to kill the cancer cell and stop them from growing. The kind of drug that doctor use for chemotherapy: “Drugs used for chemotherapy are called cytotoxic, meaning that they act largely by destroying cells”(Hirshaut and Pressman 165).
Cytotoxic will kill some normal cell, just some of them. Cancer cell are much more sensitive to the cytotoxic effects, because of this difference in sensitivity, the doctor could treat the cancer without injuring the patient. But, chemotherapy still have side effects: “Chemotherapy side effects: 1. Infection, 2. Forgetfullness and mood swings, 3. Changes in menstrual cycle, 4. Mouth sores, 5. Taste changes, 6. Hygiene, 7. Hair loss”(Kelly and Levine 97-9). The doctor use hormone therapy instead of chemotherapy.
Hormone therapy, an adjuvant treatment for breast cancer, use drugs that involved mostly inhibits estrogen’s cancer-driving activity. The target of this treatment: “ Hormone therapy targets and inhibits progesterone’s activity as well. But as you have probably now guessed, estrogen is a dominant and domineering hormone with the ability to change the course of a cell’s fate”(Ricks 265). Hormone therapy is blocking and removing the male hormone from the body. Hormone therapy is using drugs called Tamoxifen. Ruth Grobstein writes, “Tamoxifen is known as an antistrogen.
It has three uses in breast cancer: (1) it has been used to effectively treat established breast cancer, (2) it can reduce the expected number of breast cancers in the contralateral breast, and (3) it can reduce the risk of getting breast cancer. It is the first ‘chemopreventive’ agent that has been used in a clinical trial ton prevent breast cancer” (133). Tamoxifen has been prescribed for more than teo decades as a treatment for women who already have breast cancer. Progress in the treatment of breast cancer has been painfully slow.
To find a new treatment physician needs women volunteer, to participate in the testing: “This process of demonstrating whether a new therapy is better than the previous standard requires that women volunteer to participate in the testing of new medications and procedures. Such tests are known as clinical research trials” writes John Link, Cynthia Forsthoff and James Waisman (129). Clinical research trial can only occur after doctor and their patients have been convinced that a new treatment is equal or superior to another treatment already in use. One of the new treatment, biologics treatment, it is becoming increasingly important.
Biologics treatment is killing the cancer cell: “Targeted biologics are agent ‘targeted’ against specific molecules or cancer cells components. They often have a cancer killer molecule attached, such as a molecule that delivers radiation or an active component of chemotherapy drug” (Grobstein 131). Biologics treat only the targeted tissue nit the healthy tissue. The other treatment, Oophorectomy, the removal of the ovaries: “ A less common treatment for estrogen receptor positive breast cancer patients nowadays is the removal of the ovaries, or oophorectomy, which removes the woman’s primary source of estrogen” (Kelly and Mark Levine 87).
Development in the area of breast cancer treatment gives people in America options between surgery and therapy. The kind of treatment depends on what kind breast cancer. Treatment with surgery divided into two, breast-conserving surgery and mastectomy. The first therapy, radiation is using radioactive to kill the cancer cell. The second, chemotherapy which is using drugs called cytotoxic and hormone therapy which is using tamoxifen. To find a new treatment, doctor do clinical trial research. A lot of new treatment are becoming increasingly important.