What Do Women Know about Breast Cancer Treatment Options?

Are you looking for different breast cancer treatments that have slowly become a major cause of death for women? Breast cancer is an invasive cancer that causes the breast cells to grow unnaturally to create a tumor. The chances of having cancer in women increase with each passing year of age, and that’s why it is important to go for regular tests. Medical science has made tremendous growth to create various treatments for breast cancer.

The majority of women don’t care about this cancer unless they get diagnosed with it. However, this approach turns very costly if the tumor reaches the second or third stage. We believe that everyone should understand how dangerous this form of cancer can be. In this post, we will discuss the different breast cancer treatments available these days. Let’s check out the entire article and know how this cancer can be cured!

1. Surgery

The most common treatment doctors suggest is surgery that removes the cancerous cells from the body. Its choice depends on various factors and is taken after proper assessment by the cancer care team. The main motive for this breast cancer treatment is taking out the complete tumor. However, they try to eliminate as much part as possible if the entire portion can’t be removed.

There are two major types of surgery used for treating breast cancer about which we have explained in detail below:

• Lumpectomy

Also known as a partial mastectomy, this surgery is used to remove a certain area of the breast with cancerous cells. The doctor's main motive is to eliminate cancer and leave the healthy area in the breast. The patient usually has to receive radiation therapy after treatment to stop cancer recurrence.

Q. Is radiation therapy compulsory after lumpectomy?

It is done to eliminate the chances of remaining any microscopic cancer cells. The radiation treatment assists in treating cancer by removing any traces of the tumor.

Q. Can Lumpectomy be done in combination with local anesthesia?

Most patients receive lumpectomy surgery under general anesthesia, where they are put to sleep. However, few instances involve local anesthesia where only the breast area is numbed.

• Mastectomy

In this surgical treatment, the complete part of breast tissue is removed as it spreads to multiple areas. It is usually recommended when lumpectomy can’t do the job adequately due to the relatively large size of the tumor. Women with a genetic mutation may also recommend this breast cancer treatment.

Q. Do Mastectomy causes lots of pain?

Yes, the patient has to deal with temporary pain that goes away in a few days. However, there is a chance that it may last for weeks in some people.

Q. What happens during a mastectomy?

The complete part of the breast, including areola, nipple, skin, and tissues are removed from the body during a mastectomy. It ensures all the cancerous cells get removed from the body.

2. Hormone Therapy

In a few cases, hormones like progesterone and estrogen affect breast cancer by helping the receptors of tumor cells to grow. Hormone therapy is used for stopping these hormones and is generally used after the completion of surgery. It is considered greatly useful in reducing the chance of cancer coming back.

Besides that, this breast cancer treatment is also used to treat tumors that come back after surgery or reach other portions of the body. Nearly 2/3rd of breast cancers are caused by hormones in the body.

How hormone therapy helps in treating breast cancer?

Hormone therapy is useful for breast cancer patients in the following ways:

• It greatly assists in reducing the chances of cancer coming back into the body.
• This treatment is very beneficial to minimize the chance of cancer reaching other parts of the body.
• Shrinking the size of the tumor before surgery
• Slow down the speed at which cancer spreads in the body

What to expect during hormone therapy?

There are a variety of different ways hormone therapy is performed, and we have mentioned the major ones below:

• Medications

The medicines like toremifene, tamoxifen, and fulvestrant are used for stopping the hormones from growing cancer. The tumor cells slow down and may die when hormones don’t attach to them.

• Hormone therapies

If a patient doesn’t respond well to the medicines, the doctor may advise hormone therapy to stop cancer from producing hormones. It also includes medications like goserelin in combination with therapy.

3. Targeted Drug Therapy

Another treatment doctors use for treating breast cancer is targeted drug therapy that either destroys the cancer cells or slows down their growth. It blocks their growth by targeting its genes and proteins without harming the healthy cells. They are commonly used in combination with chemotherapy for better treatment. An interesting thing about this breast cancer treatment is that it offers very few side effects compared with chemotherapy.

What Does Targeted Drug Therapy Do?

There are certain processes needed to be followed during the targeted therapy we have mentioned below:

• This treatment identifies the cancerous area in cells and blocks them from growing in the body.
• It further changes the proteins to make sure the cells die.
• It ensures the development of new blood vessels gets stopped so that cancer cells don’t grow.
• It prompts the immune system to tackle cancer.

4. Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy is a very useful cancer treatment option that destroys breast cancer cells using certain types of meditations. The physicians inject the drugs into patients' veins either through the mouth as a pill or using a needle. This breast cancer treatment is frequently used in combination with hormone therapy & surgery.

Chemo is also used to increase the effectiveness of other treatments and minimize the chances of cancer returning to the body. Besides that, this treatment is very beneficial for controlling cancer and helping the patient live a long life. It also carries a few temporary and serious side effects, and it is up to the doctor whether to go for this treatment or not.

When Chemotherapy is performed?

It is generally suggested in the below-mentioned situations to the patients:

• After Surgery (Adjuvant Therapy)

Once surgery removes the tumor, chemotherapy is performed to destroy cancer cells that stayed undetected during the previous treatment. It is performed to minimize the chances of cancer returning.

• Before Surgery (Neoadjuvant Therapy)

In many cases, doctors recommend the patients go for chemo before surgery to shrink the size of the tumor. Generally, neoadjuvant therapy is performed for cancers like Her2 positive, Inflammatory, Triple-Negative, and large breast cancers. It let the surgeon eliminate the entire tumor from the body and decreases the chances of the disease reaching lymph nodes.

How long is chemotherapy given for breast cancer?

Every session of chemotherapy follows a certain period of recovery. According to conditions, if the cancer is in an early stage, the chemo treatment lasts three to six months. On the other hand, chemotherapy can even last for more than six months if cancer has reached an advanced stage.

Conclusion

People with breast cancer should have proper information about various treatments. It doesn’t matter what stage someone is in, having adequate breast cancer treatment can do wonders for sure. It is very important to gather adequate information before beginning the treatment. If you have queries regarding breast cancer treatment, please write about it in the comment section.