How Does It Feel When You Have Breast Cancer

Breast Cancer Signs And Symptoms

Knowing how your breasts normally look and feel is an important part of breast health. Although having regular screening tests for breast cancer is important, mammograms do not find every breast cancer. This means it’s also important for you to be aware of changes in your breasts and to know the signs and symptoms of breast cancer.

The most common symptom of breast cancer is a new lump or mass. A painless, hard mass that has irregular edges is more likely to be cancer, but breast cancers can be tender, soft, or round. They can even be painful. For this reason, it’s important to have any new breast mass, lump, or breast change checked by an experienced health care professional.

Other possible symptoms of breast cancer include:

• Swelling of all or part of a breast
• Skin dimpling
• Breast or nipple pain
• Nipple or breast skin that is red, dry, flaking or thickened
• Nipple discharge
• Swollen lymph nodes

Although any of these symptoms can be caused by things other than breast cancer, if you have them, they should be reported to a health care professional so the cause can be found.

Remember that knowing what to look for does not take the place of having regular mammograms and other screening tests. Screening tests can help find breast cancer early, before any symptoms appear. Finding breast cancer early gives you a better chance of successful treatment.

‘i Had Fevers And Difficulty Breastfeeding’

I was misdiagnosed with mastitis twice because I had high fevers and trouble breastfeeding. It turned out to be cancer. Tumors were blocking the milk ducts. I was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer at age 32, five weeks after I had my first child. It didnt look like mastitis at all. So many people told me ‘100% chance’ it is nothing. No one thought of any alternative, however, until multiple courses of treatment failed.

Melissa Thompson, healthcare policy advocate, Stamford, Connecticut

Life With Cancer Can Hurt

Cancer can be painful but that hurt is not always visible to someone on the outside. Pain can cause irritability. That irritability, in turn, can make someone say negative things they would otherwise not say, or do things they would otherwise not do. If you ever feel hurt by your friend with cancer or are surprised by his reaction to something, ask yourself: “Is it pain speaking?”

Cancer pain is one of the greatest fears for people with cancer. Though good treatments are available, many people are afraid to talk to their healthcare providers about cancer pain treatment options. For some, it is the fear of addiction. For others, it’s the desire to be “brave.”

There are two sides to this. Certainly, it is better if medications aren’t needed. Almost any drug can have side effects, and usually the more medications the more side effects. Yet studies say that cancer patientsat least those with advanced cancersare under-treated for pain.

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Further Tests For Breast Cancer

If a diagnosis of breast cancer is confirmed, more tests will be needed to determine the stage and grade of the cancer, and to work out the best method of treatment.

If your cancer was detected through the NHS Breast Screening Programme, you’ll have further tests in the screening centre before being referred for treatment.

Other Types Of Breast Cancer

Other less common types of breast cancer include invasive lobular breast cancer, which develops in the cells that line the milk-producing lobules, inflammatory breast cancer and Paget’s disease of the breast.

It’s possible for breast cancer to spread to other parts of the body, usually through the lymph nodes or the bloodstream. If this happens, it’s known as “secondary” or “metastatic” breast cancer.

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Treatment Options For Metastatic Breast Cancer

Treatment for metastatic breast cancer often is based on systemic therapies, which use drugs rather than surgery or radiation. Metastases treatments are designed to shrink tumors and slow their growth, help ease symptoms and improve quality of life. Treatment may change, such as when one therapy stops working, or the side effects become too uncomfortable. Rather than having only one treatment, most patients undergo several treatments combined to help fight the cancer.

The four broad categories of drug-based treatments are:

Are You Having Breast Cancer Pain

How often does breast cancer cause breast pain? If you have breast pain, what are the chances it’s cancer? What types of breast cancers are more likely to be painful? Since breast pain affects roughly half of all women at some point in our lives, these are important questions to be asking.

Learn about about how often breast cancer is painful , and whether pain may increase your risk of breast cancer in the future.

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Signs Of Inflammatory Breast Cancer

Another type of breast cancer, known as inflammatory breast cancer , will only rarely cause lumps or symptoms. This type of breast cancer does not show up on a mammogram. Symptoms of inflammatory breast cancer may include:

• Red, swollen, itchy breast
• Tenderness of the breast when touched
• A pitted or ridged appearance of the surface of the breast
• Aching, burning, heaviness in one breast
• One breast that is significantly larger than the other breast
• A nipple that faces inward
• Swollen lymph nodes under the arm
• Swollen lymph nodes above the collarbone
• Other symptoms that do not go away after you take a course of antibiotics

It is important to remember that several other conditions besides cancer can cause these changes. Eczema can cause changes to the texture of the skin on your breasts, for example, and many illnesses can cause swollen lymph nodes. Breasts may change size during your menstrual cycle, inverted or flat nipples throughout life are common, and milk leaks are very normal during pregnancy or shortly after you have had a baby.

If you notice changes in the size of only one breast, skin changes not associated with eczema, changes in the size or shape of only one breast, or have nipple discharge when you are not pregnant or during postpartum, however, you should seek a medical opinion. Other signs to look for are nipples that invert or flatten suddenly or a feeling of warmth inside your breast.

Who Gets Breast Cancer

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women other than skin cancer. Increasing age is the most common risk factor for developing breast cancer, with 66% of breast cancer patients being diagnosed after the age of 55.

In the US, breast cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer death in women after lung cancer, and itâs the leading cause of cancer death among women ages 35 to 54. Only 5 to 10% of breast cancers occur in women with a clearly defined genetic predisposition for the disease. The majority of breast cancer cases are âsporadic, meaning there is no definitive gene mutation.

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‘i Felt A Pea On My Ribs’

I had done monthly self-breast exams since I was in my early 20s. I felt a tiny hard little bump the size of a small pea. I could only feel it because it was over my rib at the bottom of my left breast. In retrospect, my bra may have hurt a little in that area before I found the lump. I have had many lumps, bumps, and cysts biopsied, but this pea was definitely different. I scheduled my annual mammogram along with a biopsy. I received the breast cancer diagnosis within a week, just shy of my 55th birthday. Turns out, there was another in the other breast that didnt show up on a mammogram. I also discovered I was a BRCA 1 mutation carrier. I needed aggressive chemo followed by a double mastectomy. Had I not done the exam that evening, everything would be quite different.

Cynthia Bailey, MD, president and CEO of Advanced Skin Care and Dermatology, Inc., Sebastopol, California

Questions To Ask The Doctor

• Do you know the stage of the cancer?
• If not, how and when will you find out the stage of the cancer?
• Would you explain to me what the stage means in my case?
• Based on the stage of the cancer, how long do you think Ill live?
• Do you know if my cancer has any of these proteins: estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, or the HER2 protein?
• What does it mean if my cancer has any of these proteins?
• What will happen next?

There are many ways to treat breast cancer.

Surgery and radiation are used to treat cancer in a specific part of the body . They do not affect the rest of the body.

Chemotherapy, hormone treatment, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy drugs go through the whole body. They can reach cancer cells almost anywhere in the body.

Doctors often use more than one treatment for breast cancer. The treatment plan thats best for you will depend on:

• The cancerâs stage and grade
• If the cancer has specific proteins, like the HER2 protein or hormone receptors
• The chance that a type of treatment will cure the cancer or help in some way
• Your age
• Other health problems you have
• Your feelings about the treatment and the side effects that come with it

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How Do I Keep My Breasts Healthy

Your doctor can help you decide the right time to start and how often to get them. The American Cancer Society recommends women ages 45 to 54 at average risk for breast cancer get yearly mammograms. Women 55 and older can switch to getting a mammogram every other year or continue with the yearly screening tests. Women ages 40 to 44 can start a yearly mammogram.

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends screening mammograms every other year for women ages 50-74.

If you have a high risk for breast cancer, get a mammogram every year. You may start getting them at a younger age, too. You may also get ultrasound screenings, too. Breast MRI screening tests, in addition to mammogram, is sometimes used in certain women with a high risk of breast cancer. Talk with your doctor to decide what’s best for you.

Your Armpit Lymph Nodes Are Swollen

Most people are always looking for bumps in their breasts, but don’t forget to check your lymph nodes for swelling, too. “Many patients who end up diagnosed with breast cancer that has spread to the lymph nodes have no symptoms in the breast, no changes in the structure of the breast, but they come in for a consult because they feel something under their arm,” says Alvarez. “This may mean that cancer from the breast has traveled to the lymph nodes, and now there is lymph node invasion.”

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Breast Cancer Symptoms You Shouldn’t Ignore

Most breast cancer symptoms are discovered by women during regular dailyactivities like bathing. Knowing how your breasts look and feel, andbeing alert for the signs and symptoms of breast cancer, like a lump,can help you detect the disease early, when it’s easiest to treat.

Most breast changes are due to hormonal cycles or conditions that are less worrying than breast cancer. However, if you experience any of the following breast cancer symptoms, even if they seem mild, see your doctor.

• A lump in the breast or armpit is the most common symptom of breast cancer. Patients often describe this as a ball or a nodule. Lumps may feel soft and rubbery or hard. Unless you have small breasts or the lump is very large, you probably wont be able to see it.
• Skin redness
• Nipple changes, including the nipple turning inward, pulling to one side or changing direction
• Ulcer on the breast or nipple
• Thickening of the skin, resulting in an orange-peel texture

Though rare, men can also get breast cancer. The most common symptoms of male breast cancer are a lump, discharge or dimpling.

How Breast Cancer Pain May Feel

If breast cancer is the cause of breast pain, it will often be present in only one breast, whereas benign breast pain is often on both sides.

Breast cancer pain can be persistent and very specific, usually hurting in just one spot. But, breast cancer can be present in your breast before it causes pain. If you have other symptoms of breast cancer, such as nipple retraction, sudden swelling of your breast, or sudden skin changes, consult your doctor for a clinical breast exam.

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How Breast Cancer Spreads And Recurs

• Treatment and Outlook

Breast cancer is frightening enough without the fear that it could travel to other parts of the body. Metastasis is the term for the spread of cancer. About 250,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer and roughly 40,000 will die from the disease each year. When breast cancer is diagnosed in the early stages, many women go on to live cancer-free lives.

Yet for others, the disease is metastatic at the time of diagnosis or later recurs. It’s thought that metastatic disease is responsible for around 66% of the deaths related to breast cancer. How does breast cancer spread or recur?

Breast Lumps Or Lumpiness

Many women find their breasts feel lumpy. Breast tissue naturally has a bumpy texture.

Some women have more lumpiness in their breasts than others. In most cases, this lumpiness is no cause to worry.

If the lumpiness can be felt throughout the breast and feels like your other breast, then its likely normal breast tissue.

Lumps that feel harder or different from the rest of the breast or that feel like a change should be checked. This type of lump may be a sign of breast cancer or a benign breast condition .

See a health care provider if you:

• Find a new lump that feels different from the rest of your breast
• Find a new lump that feels different from your other breast
• Feel something thats different from what you felt before

If youve had a benign lump in the past, dont assume a new lump will also be benign. The new lump may not be breast cancer, but its best to make sure.

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Common Causes Of Breast Lumps

Fibroadenomas. These are the most common benign lumps. If you push on them, they are solid, round, rubbery lumps that move freely. Theyre usually painless. Women between 20 and 30 get them most often. Theyre also more common in African-American women. Fibroadenomas can be surgically removed.

Fibrocystic changes. Changes in hormones during your menstrual cycles can create changes in your breasts. These are known as fibrocystic breast changes. You could get lumps in both breasts that increase in size and tenderness just before your period. You might have nipple discharge as well.

The lumps are milk ducts and tissues around them that have grown and widened to form cysts. These enlarge quickly in response to hormones released near your period. The lumps may be hard or rubbery and could feel like a single lump. Fibrocystic changes can also cause breast tissue to thicken.

These changes are often most noticeable during your 40s. Theyre the most common cause of benign breast lumps in women ages 35 to 50. Postmenopausal women are less likely to have these types of breast changes. Thats because they dont have monthly changes in hormones.

They dont require treatment, but your doctor may recommend ways to ease monthly tenderness.

Simple cysts. Simple cysts are fluid-filled sacs that usually affect both breasts. You could have one or many. They can vary in size. Their tenderness and size often change with your menstrual cycle.

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Symptoms Of Metastatic Breast Cancer

The symptoms of metastatic breast cancer may be different than those of early-stage breast cancer, but not always. Sometimes, there are no symptoms at all.

You should always speak with your doctor if you experience any new signs or symptoms, but here are some of the most common signs that breast cancer has spread:

• Bone pain or bone fractures due to tumor cells spreading to the bones or spinal cord
• Headaches or dizziness when cancer has spread to the brain
• Shortness of breath or chest pain, caused by lung cancer
• Jaundice or stomach swelling

The symptoms of breast cancer metastasis may also vary depending on where in the body the cancer has spread. For example:

• If the breast or chest wall is affected, symptoms may include pain, nipple discharge, or a lump or thickening in the breast or underarm.
• If the cancer has spread to bones, symptoms may include pain, fractures or decreased alertness due to high calcium levels.
• If the cancer has spread to the lungs, symptoms may include shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, coughing, chest pain or fatigue.
• If the cancer has spread to the liver, symptoms may include nausea, fatigue, swelling of the feet and hands or yellowing skin.
• If cancer has spread to the central nervous system, which includes the brain or spinal cord, symptoms may include pain, memory loss, headache, blurred or double vision, difficulty with and/or movement or seizures.

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‘i Noticed What Felt Like A Frozen Pea In My Armpit’

During a routine breast self-exam, I felt a really tiny lump. It didnt hurt, but it was mobile and felt like a frozen pea. It was right inside my armpit, which seemed odd at first, but I remembered that your breast tissue actually extends into your armpit. This didnt feel consistent with the breast changes that came along with my menstrual cycle.

“I actually kept quite calm, even though in my gut, I knew what was going on. So I called my ob-gyn, who offered to take a look during my next annual exam, which was months away. After nothing changed in a week, I called the breast center at my local hospital and demanded to be seen. After imaging and biopsies, I was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 24.

“From my experience, I hope that other women will learn that you need to monitor changes in your body, but its futile if youre afraid to speak up about them. Women need to have the confidence to speak up.

Brittany Whitman, Cleveland Education Ambassador for Bright Pink