by Gillian Taber

Created on: June 03, 2009   Last Updated: June 16, 2009

Breast cancer is responsible for approximately 40,000 female deaths every year in the USA alone. Early detection and better treatments are improving the figures and the current survival rates have seen the 5-year rate rise to around 80%. Overall, 88% of women will survive at least another 10 years. There are over 2 million breast cancer survivors in America today which is testament to the vast improvement in breast cancer understanding and detection.

The Importance of Early Detection:

Mammograms and self-examination are the vital tools in detecting breast cancer early. If the cancer is caught in the early stages the subsequent treatment has a far higher chance of being effective. Approximately 9 out of 10 women diagnosed with early stage (stage I) breast cancer survive to five years or more compared to 1 in 10 when they reach late stage (stage IV).

Self examination should be an important part of a woman's routine. Doctors, health clinics and the Internet provide guidelines and demonstrations of exactly how to perform breast self-examination (BSE). Women from the age of 20 onwards should be automatically examining their breasts once a month and continuing to do so, even after menopause.

If a woman is familiar with the shape of her breasts she is more likely to detect changes in them and be able to distinguish unusual lumps. However, BSE is not foolproof and although many women do detect early stage breast cancer via this method it is also the case that many lumps are missed. It may be that only the appearance of other symptoms such as changes around the nipple, a lump in the armpit or swelling in the breast are the first signs that something is wrong.

Mammograms are the next method used for detection of breast cancer. From around the age of 40 women should have a baseline mammogram which will be used as a comparison to all subsequent mammograms. Between the ages of 40 to 49, one or two mammograms should be given each year, dependant on the results and one per year for women aged 50 and above.

A mammogram is a double x-ray of both breasts and it is done under what is known as compression. The breast is photographed once in the top to bottom position and from side to side. Digital images are becoming more common and are often better for women who have dense breast tissue or are pre-menopausal. This is because the images are usually of a higher contrast.

Current Treatment Options:

Surgery - Combined with chemotherapy/radiation treatment, this is the most

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