Written By: Debjani Arora | Updated : October 9, 2017 6:11 PM IST
Breast cancer occurs in women and can rarely occur in men too. Its symptoms usually range from a lump in the breast, bloody discharge from the nipples, change in shape of the breasts, etc. The treatment for breast cancer depends on the stage and severity of the cancer. In some cases, a surgery might be needed and in some cases, it might be a combination of chemotherapy and radiation. At times, all three methods might be needed to treat the cancer. Here are six breast cancer symptoms you should never ignore.
We spoke to Dr Rucha Kaushik, Breast Cancer Surgeon, P D Hinduja Hospital and Research Centre, Mumbai to know what one can expect after a breast cancer treatment. Here is what she had to say:
Treating the cancer
For people suffering from early stages of breast cancer like stage I and II, a surgery is usually the first line of treatment. Depending on where a tumour is growing a part of the breast or the entire breast might be removed. However, even for early-stage cancer, the treatment doesn t stop with a surgery. One has to go through cycles of chemotherapy within a month after the surgery. These cycles continue for four to five months. Once chemotherapy is over, radiation might be suggested after two weeks. It stretches for about four weeks to complete. If the breast is conserved then radiation is necessary but if breasts are removed then depending on the tumour history a decision is taken by the doctors if the patient needs radiation. It takes around eight months to complete the entire treatment process. Then depending on the type of a tumour one had, oral medications are prescribed to them which they have to take for five to 10 years. Here are 10 dos and don ts one should follow when on chemotherapy.
In advanced stage of breast cancer, i.e., stage III and IV a surgery is not recommended. The cancer is usually managed with chemotherapy and if required radiation. Sometimes, even these treatment methods might not be very viable and such advanced stage patients are kept only on observation. In these patients, the cancer is not restricted just to the breast and it metastasises to the bone, liver or lungs which are the commonest sites of metastasis. At times it can come in opposite breast too. In stage IV patients a surgery is not feasible and chemotherapy is usually the suggested treatment option. Sometimes radiation is given to these patients in the bones or if there is a bleeding mass which refuses to react to chemo. Read on what kind of cancers don t react to chemotherapy.
Life after the treatment
Whether you go for a surgery or have to go for rounds of chemotherapy remember you still need to follow-up with your doctor on a regular basis. For women who undergo surgery for breast cancer need to follow-up with their doctors every two to three months to keep a tab if there is a recurrence. For stage III & IV cancer, they are under strict observations to see if the cancer is spreading further.
Since no one can predict a recurrence, one is advised to stick to the follow-up schedules to get treated on time.
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