Everybody talks about breast cancer, but what do you need to know about it? Physicians, advertising panels, media coverage, and many other communication resources have been spent to increase the awareness of the population about breast cancer. This is a relatively common disease among women, especially those who have a family history of estrogen-dependent cancer. However, all women should know and understand the signs and symptoms related to breast cancer regardless of their medical background.
In this article, we will summarize the most important symptoms of breast cancer. We will cover the earliest warning signs and progress further to the most concerning symptoms. If you identify any of these symptoms, it will be highly recommended to ask your physician about them, determine your condition, and follow an early treatment.
A breast lump
In most cases, a breast lump is the earliest symptom patients report in the event of breast cancer. Not all breast lumps are indicative of cancer, and only 20% of them become a serious health concern. There are breast cysts, collections of fatty tissue, and even benign growths of glandular tissue that would give you the same breast lump sensation. It is more common to feel them before or during your period. But a breast lump caused by cancer usually has some distinctive features.
In most cases, breast cancer lumps are painless. They feel very firm and solid, they usually have an irregular shape, and when trying to move it, you will realize they are fixed to the tissue. However, this is only a guide to suspect cancer, there are exceptions to this rule, and there’s no way to determine whether or not a breast lump is cancer without additional studies.
It is recommended that women constantly feel their breasts while in the shower to be aware of any change in consistency and detect breast lumps early. They should also compare their symptoms to their menstrual cycle in order to get a clear idea of how their breast tissue changes as a result of hormonal changes.
Breast pain
In many cases, breast cancer does not give out any symptoms. What’s more, the usual breast lumps are not painful to the touch, but that’s not always the case. Sometimes, breast cancer triggers pain from the early start, and sometimes it happens as a result of inflammation in advanced stages of the disease.
In the event of breast pain, patients should identify whether or not it is common for them to feel this type of pain during their periods. It is useful to identify any possible trauma to the breasts and relate all of these events to the intensity and pattern of their symptoms. A clinician should attend any breast pain that feels suspicious or different from the usual pattern experienced during menstruation. He will decide whether or not to perform any additional tests.
Swelling of the breast
Another common sign of breast cancer is swelling of the breast. Swelling can be located in the armpit and many other areas of the chest. Swelling is not an early symptom of breast cancer. Instead, it usually happens when the tumor is large enough to cause an alteration in the average circulation of the blood or lymph. It may also indicate that cancer is starting to spread into the nearby lymph nodes and affecting their normal function of draining lymph back to the general circulation.
Moderate swelling is also detectable as a normal finding during a woman’s period and before it starts. However, this swelling tends to affect both breasts at the same time, and it does not change the size and proportion of the breast. Instead, suspicious swelling is often unilateral (affecting only one half of the body) and sometimes it may be severe enough to cause a visible change to the breast.
Changes of color
Directly related to swelling and inflammation, the affected breast may start changing color, usually to a reddish tone that will often feel hot to the touch. These changes are caused by inflammation.
Breast cancer cells modulate the inflammatory response to stimulate the production of vasoactive substances. They do so because inflammation increases the blood flow to the tumor and gives cancer more nutrients and oxygen to survive. Thus, the area affected with cancer would dilate its blood vessels and increase blood flow, which causes the characteristic change of color of the skin.
When malignant tumors are not superficial, changes of color in the skin might not be noticeable, but it is still possible to experience them in later stages. If you notice a change of color in one of your breasts, be sure to notify this finding to your physician and follow his advice carefully to rule out any malignant cause.
Changes of texture
Another critical difference in breast cancer is a change in the texture of the skin. This is often a symptom of a late stage, when cancer cells have already grown bigger, and especially in Paget’s disease, a specific type of breast cancer.
Texture changes start to show when the inflammation in and around the tumor spreads to the skin cells and starts to change the normal turnover of epithelial cells. As a result, patients may begin to notice scaling and dryness of the skin. The skin becomes thickened as well, and the affected breast may sometimes start itching.
These changes of texture should be differentiated from eczema, dermatitis, and other skin conditions. However, if you’re experiencing them in both breasts, it is not likely to be caused by breast cancer. In all cases, it is best to ask your doctor about your symptoms in order to get professional advice according to your symptoms and a thorough physical exam.
Nipple discharge
Breast tissue in women is larger and more active than men’s. They are also more likely to produce various secretions, including but not limited to a milky discharge. This happens during lactation and in many other instances. However, in cancer, patients the fluid discharge is not breast milk. It looks yellowish, has a foul smell, and may contain blood as well.
Any nipple discharge, either clear, white, or colored, should be examined by a doctor. They should only appear during lactation, and they usually point out to one of many health problems, including breast cancer. Other possible diagnoses are breast tissue infections, a hormonal imbalance, thyroid disease, and others. Some birth control pills would also cause a nipple discharge, which is why only a professional would be able to tell the difference.
Nipple turning inward
It is also called nipple inversion or nipple retraction, and it is a common sign of breast cancer. As the tumor grows, it’s still attached to the nearby tissue and starts to pull the surrounding areas of the skin as it causes several cell changes to the breast. All of these changes would cause the nipple to reverse or retract inwards. Sometimes, the difference is not so visible, and the nipple looks a bit different as the tumor progresses further. This sign is usually evaluated by a professional because there are some menstrual cycle changes and other hormonal problems that would typically cause nipple changes. If you’ve experienced a change in the appearance of your nipples in and around ovulation, this is taken as a normal change as long as it repeats itself along with your hormonal cycle. In any case, nipple retraction is a significant sign you should inform your doctor. It might be a concerning problem, and sometimes it is a sign of late-stage cancer. After a physical exam and some diagnostic tests, your doctor will be able to tell you what is happening and whether or not you need to worry about it. When feeling your breast during a routine check-up, you will notice that your doctor will perform circular movements with his hands all over the breast from the outside to the inside, gently feel the nipple, and then go to your armpit. He’s not only looking for breast lumps but also swollen lymph nodes that usually appear near the tumor or inside the armpit. Lymph nodes are rounded structures located all over your body. They are an essential part of your immune system, and they receive and process lymph, which collects fluids from the different tissues to analyze and create body defenses against invaders. When cancer cells become more aggressive, they become loose and start to travel to other areas. The first place they would travel to is through the lymph and into nearby lymph nodes. When this happens, the lymph node region becomes swollen and may become tender to the touch. This is also called lymphadenopathy or adenopathy by clinicians. The most common lymph nodes affected by breast cancer are those located on the armpit. However, if you find one over there, it does not mean you have breast cancer. Several other conditions would cause the same symptom. Clear examples are breast tissue infections and even a cut or bruise in any part of your arm. Thus, it is essential to get a medical check-up to make out the difference between benign lymphadenopathy and one that’s caused by malignant tumors. It is not an early sign of breast cancer. Instead, patients with breast cancer do not experience weight loss until a late stage of the disease, and often as their treatment begins. However, it can be listed as a sign of breast cancer as well as any other type of cancer. Weight loss in cancer results from a reduction in the availability of nutrients for the rest of the body. The tumor increases the blood flow in the nearby tissues to get more oxygen and nutrients from the organism. Thus, cancer patients often experience a wasting syndrome characterized by weight loss, low appetite, and low energy levels. In breast cancer, weight loss usually appears when the cancer cells have spread to distant tissues. It is often a symptom of metastasis to the liver, and doctors agree that patients who experience severe weight loss usually have a more aggressive tumor with an adverse prognosis. In the event of metastasis, cancer symptoms are not only relegated to the breasts. They may appear in different parts of the body. Metastasis is a late stage of cancer in which cells have already lost all of their normal properties, including the proteins that anchor them to the nearby tissues. Therefore, cells begin to break off from the main tumor traveling through the lymph nodes and the bloodstream. Breast cancer usually causes metastasis to the bones, the liver, the lungs, and the brain. We already mentioned that weight loss is often caused by metastasis to the liver, but the most common sign is jaundice, fever, and liquid retention and swelling all over the body. When cancer cells spread to the bones, they may cause a dull pain that becomes worse over time and increased risk of bone fractures. Lung metastasis would cause a persistent cough, difficulty to breath, and shortness of breath. Brain metastasis highly depends on the affected area on the brain, and usually causes visual problems, headaches, lightheadedness, and weakness. Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer among women, and it is also one of the most common preventable cancers worldwide. Thus, if you’re attentive to your symptoms and keep the habit of feeling your breasts regularly, you will be able to notice any particular change that needs to be examined by a professional. The signs and symptoms we described above are thought to be analyzed collectively and should be assessed by a doctor to check their clinical validity. Even after examining a patient, the most skilled physician will not be able to diagnose cancer without additional tests. Therefore, it is important to ask your doctor about your symptoms and follow his guidance to the letter. Swollen lymph nodes
Weight loss
Breast cancer metastasis symptoms
