How Do I Know If My Child Has Breast Cancer
9 Tips for Talking to Young Children About Breast CancerPlan what you will say in advance. Focus on the positives. Provide accurate, clear information. Put your diagnosis in perspective. Let them know they wont be forgotten. Paint a picture of the new normal. Explain the visible effects cancer treatment might have on you.More items
Breast Cancer Vs Normal Development
Normal breast development can resemble breast cancer, and it is not possible to tell what is normal and what is not based on a comparison of symptoms.
Normal breast development, however, usually follows a pattern. It begins with nickel-sized lumps under each nipple, and the breasts gradually grow from these lumps.
Breast cancer, in general, is survivable with prompt treatment. This is particularly true of noninvasive breast cancers, and of breast cancers that have not spread to other areas of the body.
Treatments often include chemotherapy, radiation, medication, surgery, or a combination of these.
Teen Breast Cancer Outlook
It is estimated by researchers that 80% of teens diagnosed with breast cancer at the ages of 15 to 19 will still be alive 5 years later. Since its extremely rare in teens, doctors may take the approach of wait and see by delaying treatment. Its still important to take appropriate steps in preventing breast cancer like maintaining a healthy weight and diet, avoiding tobacco products, and staying physically active.
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- Other breast lumps
- Could be pregnant
- Change in shape or appearance of breast
- Nipple discharge that is clear or milky
- Breast pain and cause is unknown. Exception: continue if only occurs before menstrual periods or with vigorous exercise.
- Age 13 or older with no breast buds or breast tissue
- You have other questions or concerns
Types Of Breast Lumps That Teens Can Get
The most common type of breast cancer found in teens is secretory adenocarcinoma. This is generally a slow growing, nonaggressive cancer.
Though theres little chance of this type of cancer spreading to other parts of the body, spread to local lymph nodes has been noted in a few cases.
Most breast lumps in teenage girls are fibroadenomas, which are noncancerous. An overgrowth of connective tissue in the breast causes fibroadenomas.
The lump is usually hard and rubbery, and you can move it around with your fingers. Fibroadenomas account for 91 percent of all solid breast masses in girls younger than 19 years old.
Other less common breast lumps in teens include cysts, which are noncancerous fluid-filled sacs.
Banging or injuring breast tissue, possibly during a fall or while playing sports, can also cause lumps.
If you feel anything unusual in your breast, see your doctor. They will ask:
- about your familys medical history
- when you discovered the lump
- if theres nipple discharge
- if the lump hurts
If anything looks or feels suspicious, your doctor will have you undergo an ultrasound. This test uses sound waves to see into your breasts. It can help determine whether a lump is solid, which is an indication of cancer.
If its fluid-filled, that will most likely indicate a cyst. Your doctor may also insert a fine needle into the lump to draw out tissue and test it for cancer.
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Take Action To Change Young Adult Breast Cancer Statistics
When all young adults affected by breast cancer work together, we can raise awareness, improve our representation in research and make each other stronger. We are dedicated to these goals, working to turn our unique challenges into opportunities for shared success. Join the movement! Become an advocate for young women with breast cancer.
Premenstrual Breast Pain And Swelling
- Main Symptom: breast fullness and pain.
- Cause: extra body fluid from female hormone cycles.
- Other symptoms: headache, swollen feet .
- Timing: mainly noticed in the week prior to menstrual periods.
- Course: improves during menstrual period and goes away between menstrual periods.
- Physical Findings: fullness that can be felt throughout both breasts.
- Onset: usually 2 years after onset of periods . Similar onset as for menstrual cramps.
- Frequency: 10% of teens and 50% of adult women.
- Treatment: mainly ibuprofen and support bra. If breast pain can’t be controlled with ibuprofen, 80% can be improved by birth control pills.
- Other treatments: daily exercise and getting enough sleep.
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General Considerations For Screening
The goal of screening for cancer is to detect preclinical disease in healthy, asymptomatic patients to prevent adverse outcomes, improve survival, and avoid the need for more intensive treatments. Screening tests have both benefits and adverse consequences .
Breast self-examination, breast self-awareness, clinical breast examination, and mammography all have been used alone or in combination to screen for breast cancer. In general, more intensive screening detects more disease. Screening intensity can be increased by combining multiple screening methods, extending screening over a wider age range, or repeating the screening test more frequently. However, more frequent use of the same screening test typically is associated with diminishing returns and an increased rate of screening-related harms. Determining the appropriate combination of screening methods, the age to start screening, the age to stop screening, and how frequently to repeat the screening tests require finding the appropriate balance of benefits and harms. Determining this balance can be difficult because some issues, particularly the importance of harms, are subjective and valued differently from patient to patient. This balance can depend on other factors, particularly the characteristics of the screening tests in different populations and at different ages.
What Causes Breast Cancer
Although the exact causes of breast cancer are unknown, there are certain known risk factors, such as:
- Genetic mutations cause changes in your genes
- Breast cancer in the family
- Personal history of benign breast conditions or cancer
- Radiation exposure in the past
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The Most Common Cancers In Young Adults
The types of cancers seen in young adults are not unique to this age group, but the most common types in this age range are largely different from those in children or older adults.
Some of the most common cancers in young adults are:
- Colorectal cancer
- Brain and spinal cord tumors
Even within this age group, some of these cancers become more or less common as people age. For example, lymphomas are more common before age 25, whereas breast, cervical, and colorectal cancers become more common after age 25.
Many other types of cancer can occur in young adults as well.
Finding The Right Treatment
Cancer is treated in different ways depending on the type and stage, a person’s age and general health, and other factors. It is important to find a doctor who has experience treating your type of cancer in teens or young adults. Your oncologist will work with you and your loved ones to come up with a treatment plan. This plan will include the types of treatment you have and how long treatment may last.
Treatment in a clinical trial is also an option for many teens and young adults. A clinical trial is a research study that tests a new treatment to learn if it is safe, effective, and possibly better than the standard treatments. Teens and young adults with cancer are underrepresented in clinical trials. Only about 2 in 100 young adults with cancer join clinical trials. This is a problem, because doctors and researchers need to know more about the best cancer treatments for people in this age group. Clinical trials also give you the chance to try a new treatment that might work for you. You cannot participate in a clinical trial if you are already receiving cancer treatment, so talk with your health care team before you begin treatment. Learn more about clinical trials.
Treatment from a childrens cancer specialist
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Age At First Period Estrogen And Breast Cancer Risk
The increased risk of breast cancer linked to a younger age at first period is likely due, at least in part, to the amount of estrogen a woman is exposed to in her life. A higher lifetime exposure to estrogen is linked to an increased breast cancer risk .
The earlier a woman starts having periods, the longer her breast tissue is exposed to estrogens released during the menstrual cycle. This means a greater lifetime exposure to estrogen.
A woman cant change the age when she started her period, but the age a girl starts her period can be impacted by certain healthy lifestyle factors. For example, girls who are lean and get more exercise tend to start their periods at a later age than other girls.
Its a good idea for all young girls to be physically active and not be overweight. However, its not recommended girls do anything to try to change when they start getting their period.
Unique Challenges For Young Adults
Breast cancer in young adults is just different. We are at a different phase of our lives and encounter unique challenges compared to older persons. These challenges may significantly impact our quality and length of life. Some of the unique challenges and issues young adults face:
- The possibility of early menopause and sexual dysfunction brought on by breast cancer treatment
- Fertility issues, because breast cancer treatment can affect a womanâs ability and plans to have children
- Many young women are raising small children while enduring treatment and subsequent side effects
- Young breast cancer survivors have a higher prevalence of psychosocial issues such as anxiety and depression13
- Questions about pregnancy after diagnosis
- Heightened concerns about body image, especially after breast cancer-related surgery and treatment
- Whether married or single, intimacy issues may arise for women diagnosed with breast cancer
- Challenges to financial stability due to workplace issues, lack of sufficient health insurance and the cost of cancer care
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Breast Lumps In Adolescents: Causes
- Breast masses in teens are almost always benign .
- Breast cancer is very rare in teens
- Fibroadenoma: most breast masses in teens are fibroadenomas. They are 1 inch oval or round, rubbery, non-tender mass. Most often in upper-outer quadrant of breast. Not associated with breast cancer. Natural course: 50% go away within 5 years, others need removal.
- Juvenile fibroadenomas: breast masses that are larger than 2 inches in size. Benign, but need to be removed by surgery.
- Breast abscess: this is a red, painful lump. Main cause is Staph bacteria. Main triggers are nipple injury, nipple piercing or lactation . Needs oral antibiotics and needle removal of the pus.
- Breast collections of blood from injury: may take weeks or months to resolve.
How Common Is Breast Cancer In Teens Causes
Breast cancer in teenagers is extremely rare. According to the American Cancer Society, the rate of female breast cancer in 15 to 19 years old individuals in the United States was 0.1 per 100,000 between 2012 and 2016. That is one teen out of a million.
Breast changes are a natural part of adolescence and should not be feared. You could be concerned that these alterations are linked to cancer, but this is a rare possibility.
Many changes occur in the breasts that are not cancerous. Most breast lumps in teenage girls are benign fibroadenomas. An overgrowth of connective tissue in the breast causes these.
Fibroadenomas are responsible for 91 percent of all solid breast lumps in girls younger than 19 years. You can normally move the lump around with your fingertips, and it feels hard and rubbery.
Cysts, which are noncancerous, fluid-filled sacs, are another less common breast lump in teenagers. A smooth and soft breast cyst is common. When you press on a cyst, it feels like you are pressing on a water balloon.
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Trends In Breast Cancer Deaths
Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in women. The chance that a woman will die from breast cancer is about 1 in 39 .
Since 2007, breast cancer death rates have been steady in women younger than 50, but have continued to decrease in older women. From 2013 to 2018, the death rate went down by 1% per year.
These decreases are believed to be the result of finding breast cancer earlier through screening and increased awareness, as well as better treatments.
Treatment Of Breast Cancer In Teens
Doctors treat secretory adenocarcinoma by surgically cutting out the cancer while sparing as much breast tissue as possible.
Doctors consider chemotherapy and radiation on a case-by-case basis. The risks these treatments pose to young, developing bodies may outweigh the benefits.
Depending on the type of therapy and how long it lasts, it can affect your fertility and increase your chances of other cancers.
You can still breastfeed after breast or nipple surgery. However, some people may produce less milk than others.
85 percent . This means that theyre 85 percent as likely to live another 5 years as 15- to 19-year-old U.S. girls without breast cancer.
The 5-year relative survival rate for women 20 years old and older who were diagnosed between 2011 to 2017 is 90.3 percent .
Because breast cancer is so rare in teens, doctors and teens may adopt a watch-and-wait approach, and delay treatment. That may account for the lower survival rate for teens with breast cancer compared with adult women with the condition.
Breast cancer is extremely rare in teens, but you should still check abnormalities. Adopting certain habits now can also help prevent breast cancer later. These include:
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Breast Lumps In Teenagers
It can be normal to feel lumps when your breasts are developing and these often disappear on their own.
If a lump causes you any discomfort, appears to get bigger or youre worried about it, talk to someone such as your GP. You may also want to talk to someone in your family or a school nurse.
Although its very unlikely that theres anything wrong, a doctor can check it out and should put your mind at rest. You can ask to see a female doctor or the practice nurse if this will make you feel more comfortable.
Very occasionally lumps are a sign of a benign breast condition. Benign means harmless, and a benign condition will not become a breast cancer. The most common benign lump as the breasts are developing is known as a fibroadenoma.
Types Of Cancers That Develop In Adolescents
Cancer starts when cells in the body begin to grow out of control. Cells in nearly any part of the body can become cancer, and can then spread to other areas of the body. To learn more about cancer and how it starts and spreads, see What Is Cancer?
For statistical purposes, cancers in adolescents are often thought of as those that start between the ages of 15 and 19. Cancer is not common in teens, but a variety of cancer types can occur in this age group, and treating these cancers can be challenging for a number of reasons.
Most cancers occur in older adults. Cancers that start in childhood are much less common. The types of cancers that develop in children are often different from the types that develop in adults. Childhood cancers are often the result of DNA changes in cells that take place very early in life, sometimes even before birth. Unlike many cancers in adults, childhood cancers are not strongly linked to lifestyle or environmental risk factors.
The types of cancers that occur in adolescents are a mix of many of the types that can develop in children and adults. The types of cancers seen in adolescents are not unique to this age group, but the most common types are different from those most common in young children or adults.
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Can A 2 Year Old Get Breast Cancer
Breast cancer in children is very rare, but it can happen. When children have tumors in their breast tissue, theyre normally benign tumors called fibroadenomas. A child with fibroadenomas will need to be monitored but wont need any treatments. Occasionally, children will have malignant breast tumors.
What Is The Average American Womans Risk Of Being Diagnosed With Breast Cancer At Different Ages
Many women are more interested in the risk of being diagnosed with breast cancer at specific ages or over specific time periods than in the risk of being diagnosed at some point during their lifetime. Estimates by decade of life are also less affected by changes in incidence and mortality rates than longer-term estimates. The SEER report estimates the risk of developing breast cancer in 10-year age intervals . According to the current report, the risk that a woman will be diagnosed with breast cancer during the next 10 years, starting at the following ages, is as follows:
- Age 30 . . . . . . 0.49%
- Age 40 . . . . . . 1.55%
- Age 50 . . . . . . 2.40%
- Age 60 . . . . . . 3.54%
- Age 70 . . . . . . 4.09%
These risks are averages for the whole population. An individual womans breast cancer risk may be higher or lower depending on known factors, as well as on factors that are not yet fully understood. To calculate an individual womans estimated breast cancer risk, health professionals can use the Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Tool, which takes into account several known breast cancer risk factors.
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