Breast Cancer Awareness Month: chemo cookery

Breast cysts are sacs filled with fluid of variableLiable to vary or change. colour and are relatively common breast lumps reported by women or identified during a clinical examination by a doctor. Approximately 7% of all women will encounter a palpable cyst during their lifetime. Although these lumps do not spread, they can vary considerably in size and result in much anxiety. Their presence can also affect the interpretation of clinical examination findings and mammograms. Cysts can be single or multiple, affect one breast or both breasts and are frequently changing in response to hormonal fluctuations during the menstrual cycleThe monthly sequence by which a woman’s body prepares for potential fertilisation of an egg released from the ovaries, involving thickening of the uterus lining and then shedding of the lining when pregnancy does not occur..

Mastalgia literally means 'pain in the region of the breast' and is the most common symptom reported by women attending breast clinics. To make a full assessment of the cause, all patients require a full history, examination and, sometimes, investigations.True breast pain can either be cyclical (getting worse before menstruationThe shedding of the lining of the uterus (period), as part of the female reproductive cycle.) or non-cyclical (unrelated to menstruation). It is important to point out that breast cancerAbnormal, uncontrolled cell division resulting in a malignant tumour that may invade surrounding tissues or spread to distant parts of the body. does not usually cause mastalgiaBreast pain.

It is now well recognised that patients with brain tumours (and their family) do best if managed by a group of doctors, both medical and surgical, who have a particular interest in the management of brain tumours. This is known as a tumour Multidisciplinary Team (MDT). All patients with brain tumours should receive highly individualised care that delivers not only the best treatment possible for the patient but treatment that is appropriate to the patient’s and family’s psychological and emotional needs. The aim of neurosurgery has always been to gain the maximal benefit for the patient with the minimum amount of risk.

Approximately one in five patients with breast cancerAbnormal, uncontrolled cell division resulting in a malignant tumour that may invade surrounding tissues or spread to distant parts of the body. will require a mastectomy rather than a lumpectomy. As mastectomy results in the distortion of the body image, it is natural for some patients to seek reconstructive surgery. However, some women are just relieved to have had the cancer removed and are not keen on having breast reconstruction. Although an external implant is available that can be put inside the brassiere, it may be inadequate for some women.

The choice of reconstruction depends upon the woman's build, shape and size of her breasts, previous scars, and her own preferences.

A cancerAbnormal, uncontrolled cell division resulting in a malignant tumour that may invade surrounding tissues or spread to distant parts of the body. can be considered as the uncontrolled growth of the cells of the body. There is unlikely to be a single cause of breast cancer but there are two categories of risk factors. We can look at things that seem to be associated with an increased risk and see if we can change any of these to reduce the risk.

Many people experience Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBSirritable bowel syndrome, a combination of abdominal pain and constipation, diarrhoea, or bouts of each that occur in the absence of any other diagnosed disease) symptoms.  Often the symptoms are mild but for many the condition is a long term burden. Many patients worry that a more serious underlying problem might be the cause.  This concern can often by reduced by a simple professional assessment without the need for invasive tests.  Tests to exclude serious disease are important when appropriate and, in older patients, may help to reduce the risk of future colonic malignancy.  

It is completely understandable that you might worry about the possibility of breast cancerAbnormal, uncontrolled cell division resulting in a malignant tumour that may invade surrounding tissues or spread to distant parts of the body. if you find a lump, but remember; most lumps are not cancer. The most likely cause for a lump depends on your age. 

The short answer is: don’t worry! Benign lumps are not cancerousMalignant, a tumour that may invade surrounding tissues or spread to distant parts of the body. and usually can safely be left alone. However, as we will see, some benignNot dangerous, usually applied to a tumour that is not malignant. lumps are not as benign as others and sometimes things that are not even lumps may need to be removed.

The term Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBDAn abbreviation for inflammatory bowel disease, a group of inflammatory conditions of the intestine. The two major forms are Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.) generally refers to both Crohns Disease (CD) and Ulcerative Colitis (UC), which, as the name suggests are both chronicA disease of long duration generally involving slow changes. diseases involving inflammationThe body’s response to injury. of the gastrointestinal tractThe gut, which begins at the mouth and ends at the anus.. Additionally around 5-10% of patients present with a colitisInflammation of the colon, also sometimes used to mean inflammation of the large intestine generally. (inflammation of the colonThe large intestine. or large bowelA common name for the large and/or small intestines.) that is difficult to diagnose as either UC or CD and can be described under the microscope as 'indeterminate'. Though there is much ongoing research we do not know the cause of these two conditions and subsequently cannot offer a 'cure' of either condition. 

The risk of developing breast cancerAbnormal, uncontrolled cell division resulting in a malignant tumour that may invade surrounding tissues or spread to distant parts of the body. increases with age; an average European woman aged 25 years has a 1 in 15000 chance of developing breast cancer; for a 40-year old woman the risk is 1 in 200, for a 50-year-old woman the chance is 1 in 50, and at the age of 80 years the chance is 1 in 11.

The number of cases of breast cancer is five times higher in Western countries than in Far Eastern countries such as Japan and China. However, Japanese women who move to the USA increase their risk of developing breast cancer, which shows that the environment also plays an important role.

Cancers can arise from any cellThe basic unit of all living organisms. in the body and therefore can take any form. When cancerAbnormal, uncontrolled cell division resulting in a malignant tumour that may invade surrounding tissues or spread to distant parts of the body. forms a single solid tumourAn abnormal swelling. or mass, surgery can be straightforward, but what about when the cancer invades around other essential tissues and organs – especially in the head and neck? Many tumours, particularly of the head and neck have previously been effectively inoperable, and so major changes in treatment approach were needed.