In today’s world, is it that occurrences of breast cancer are growing much more than it was years ago, or it is just that breast cancer is getting more visibility in the press and medical journals? It appears that the answer is a little bit of both. The population is increasing and therefore the actual number of cases is more, although the actual percentage of people diagnosed with breast cancer is not significantly different (although it is higher) than in years past.

One of the things that many people fail to understand is that anyone can get breast cancer. Although it is thought to be tied somewhat to being hereditary, that does not mean that you will not get breast cancer if there is no occurrence of it in your family history.

Another thing that is equally puzzling is why more people, particularly women where breast cancer is most likely to happen, do not get regular checkups from their doctor to check for it. I know of multiple people who were diagnosed with breast cancer, and when asked when the last time they had a mammogram done to check for the presence of breast cancer, they indicated it had been a number of years. This is truly unfortunate because like most things, if breast cancer is caught as early as possible, the chances of beating it become incredibly greater.

You should be aware of the symptoms of breast cancer, sometimes also known as inflammatory breast caner so that you can see your doctor as soon as possible if these symptoms exist. These symptoms include:

* A breast that appears bruised, or is pink or purple.
* If your breast is feeling tender or firm and enlarged.
* A consistent warm feeling in the breast.
* Pain or itching in the breast that is constant.
* A ridged or dimpled skin texture, kind of like an orange peel.
* Flattened, retracted, swollen or crusted skin around the nipple.
* Lumps or enlarged lymph nodes under the arm or around the collarbone.

This is not an exhaustive list of symptoms but if you are experiencing any of these symptoms or signs, you should see your doctor as soon as possible to get checked out. Most health insurance companies will pay for this examination, because they realize that it is going to cost them much more if the cancer is allowed to grow instead of being diagnosed, caught, and remedied early on in its development stages.

Many of these same symptoms can also indicate the presence of a breast infection called mastitis. This type of infection most frequently (although not exclusively) occurs in younger women, usually under age 35, who are breast feeding young children. This is not breast cancer but is a simple infection that is most easily treated with prescription antibiotics. It is frequently accompanied by fever. The difference here is that breast cancer does not cause a fever, nor does it respond to antibiotics.

The bottom line is that you need to be aware of the classic symptoms of breast cancer, since the earlier it is diagnosed and treated, especially with the advances in today’s medicines, the better your chances of beating it.

Jon is a computer engineer who maintain a variety of web sites based on his knowledge and experience. For more information about Breast Cancer, please visit his web site at breast-cancer-explained.com Breast Cancer Explained.

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Tags: breast cancer

One of the biggest and most exciting advances in recent history in the fight against breast cancer is a drug called Herceptin. (Trastuzumab) The drug has shown to be very successful against certain types of advanced breast cancers. Some more recent clinical trials have shown that herceptin may also be successful against certain types of earlier stage breast cancers. Herceptin has been approved for use in 1998 by the FDA.

By certain types of cancers we are referring to those that over-express a protein that is called HER2. HER2 stands for human epidermal growth factor receptor 2. HER2 can be found on the surface of cells and it is what is responsible for keeping the growth of the cell in check. When HER2 malfunctions and begins to produce too much of itself due to a mutation it can cause the cells to produce too much of themselves too quickly. This in turn can make cancers behave in a much more aggressive manner. The HER2 over-expression is a factor in 20% to 30% of breast cancer occurrences.

The official scientific big word description of Herceptin is that it is a monoclonal antibody, engineered via biotechnology. The way it works is by attaching itself to any cells that are overproducing the HER2 protein. It attacks the protein receptors which then slows the growth of the cells down. It targets the HER2 protein as opposed to traditional types of treatment which tend to destroy all fast growing cells in their path, healthy or cancerous. This is a big improvement over certain types of chemotherapy. The development of targeted treatments like Herceptin is the wave of the future.

So how does a breast cancer patient receive herceptin? Their cancer must show that it over-expresses the HER2 protein. This is determined by having a pathologist test the cancerous cells that were removed from the breast during surgery. He or she will stain the tissue with a solution that will highlight any instance of overproduction of HER2. If a patient has the HER2 over-expression present, they are considered to be HER2 positive and therefore it could be possible to treat their cancer with herceptin if needed.

Herceptin is not for everyone. It is approved for treatment of women with advanced cancer in combination with the chemotherapy drug, paclitaxel. There are side effects associated with the drug and one of those includes cardiotoxicity which can cause serious heart problems in patients. Therefore heart monitoring before, during and after treatment is crucial. Less serious side effects include fever, chills, increased cough, diarrhea and weakness. If herceptin is given with chemotherapy, nausea is possible. Other moderately severe side effects include loss of white blood cells and anemia.

A diagnosis of breast cancer can be a frightening thing, especially if you are in the percentage of patients that have the more aggressive HER2 cancer. Knowing that there is another treatment that has been proven to be effective against those types of cancers brings increased hope of survival to these women and men.

Michael Russell

Your Independent guide to

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You have undoubted run across many of the breast cancer awareness days and sessions that appear around the country sporadically. These are usually put on by a local group, a church, or sponsored by the American Cancer Society to promote breast cancer awareness in the community.

You might be wondering why your breast cancer awareness level should be raised and what benefit that represents for you, but all you need to do is look at the statistics about the reported cases of breast cancer. The reported cases of breast cancer has been rising steadily year after year, and for the coming year, the American Cancer Society estimates that there will be more than 200,000 diagnosed cases. Even scarier is that they also estimate that more than 40,000 of those cases of breast cancer will die from it.

Here is an even scarier fact for you — did you know that breast cancer is not limited to women? Yes it is true. The American Cancer Society estimates that there will be about 1600 cases of breast cancer in MEN this year, and that about 400 of them will die. So are you starting to see where breast cancer awareness is starting to be important to you and your health? With statistics like this, it is no wonder that they want to promote breast cancer awareness as much as possible.

Many people do not take this disease seriously, even despite these statistics. Although it is difficult to believe, there are many people who have not had a checkup or medical exam in the past 4, 5, or 10 years or more. How can you possibly take your health seriously if you do not have regular checkups and exams from your doctor or medical professional? One way is of course to raise your breast cancer awareness level since that is a disease where there is currently not a known cure.

Your best option for fighting breast cancer is to get early detection and early diagnosis. When breast cancer is detected early, your chances of being able to cope with it, to fight it, and via treatments like chemo, there are many documented cases of people who have beat it. But if it had not been detected and diagnosed early, those would almost certainly be different stories with radically different outcomes. What about those people who have not had a medical examination in the past 4 or 5 years? If they have developed breast cancer in that timeframe, it will certainly not be considered an early diagnosis and could even mean another fatality from breast cancer.

You need to become knowledgeable about the typical symptoms of breast cancer, and if you detect any of those symptoms at home, you should schedule a checkup with your doctor as soon as possible. For women of ages 18 to about 40, you should plan to schedule a checkup with your doctor once about every 2-3 years. For women over 40, that checkup should be not less than annually. Although breast cancer has not conclusively been determined to be hereditary, you might want to consider having checkups even more often is there is a history of cancer in your family tree. Keeping these statistics in mind, your level of breast cancer awareness should be raised where these regular checkups should be at the forefront of your mind.

Raise your breast cancer awareness levels and get those checkups. Be aware of the symptoms and if you see any of them, be sure to get an exam soon. Remember, the best chances for beating breast cancer are early detection and early diagnosis.

Jon is a prolific writer with expertise in a number of areas. Find out more information about breast-cancer-explained.com/breast_cancer_awareness.php Breast Cancer Awareness at his web site, breast-cancer-explained.com/breast_cancer_awareness.php breast-cancer-explained.com/breast_cancer_awareness.php

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Tags: breast cancer, cancer awareness

In recent years, green tea has received a lot of attention for its purported ability to prevent, and possibly even treat, cancer. But, is all the hype really meaningful? Can green tea really help in our battle to wipe out cancer?

Well, apparently the answer is yes. It seems that one of the most important tools that we have in our cancer preventing tool box is anti-oxidants. Anti-oxidants are very effective at combating free radicals that are created in our bodies as we process food.

The free radicals produced by our bodies’ damage our cells and our DNA, and eventually lead to disease if we don’t combat them. Anti-oxidants are our most important defense against the damage of free radicals. One way that we can help prevent cancer is to eat a diet that is full of anti-oxidants.

Where Can I Find Anti-oxidants?

Anti-oxidants occur naturally in fruits and vegetables. They are also in abundance in the Camellia sinensis plant, which just happens to be the tea plant.

So, to help reduce your risk of cancer, your diet should be rich in fruits, vegetables and tea. But, why is all the discussion about the health benefits of green tea, and not tea in general?

The answer is in the processing. Black tea is fermented during processing; this processing converts the natural anti-oxidants into another state, reducing their health benefits. Green tea is not fermented, and goes through less processing in general, so it retains more of the anti-oxidants in their natural state. This is why it is recommended that you consume green tea for your health.

What proof is there that it really prevents cancer?

There have been many studies in recent years that have supported the theory that green tea prevents cancer. One important study was conducted by the Saitama Cancer Center Research Institute in Japan. This study showed that when mice were fed EGCG (the most potent anti-oxidant in green tea) from green tea, the EGCG showed up in the organs where the cancer was located, and appeared to have an effect on the cancer cells.

Further, a study on breast cancer patients showed that a high daily intake of green tea was associated with a lower recurrence rate among breast cancer patients in Stages I and II.

There are many other studies that lead to the conclusion that green tea is beneficial in the prevention and treatment of cancer, particularly certain types of cancer.

So, just how much green tea do I need?

One question that often arises about the consumption of green tea for health benefits is just how much is required to make a difference. Well, it’s a very good question, and one for which we don’t have a definitive answer.

Though there’s no prescription for an amount of green tea that will reduce your risk of cancer, or treat your cancer once it’s occurred, we do believe that you should drink quite a bit if you’re doing so for health benefits.

The reason that researchers wondered if green tea might be healthful in the first place was because of the low incidence of cancer in Asian cultures. And, in these cultures, the consumption of green tea is very high.

It is estimated that in China, most people drink 4-5 cups of tea per day. In Japan, the consumption is even higher, with many Japanese drinking 8-10 cups per day. In Japan, green tea is available in vending machines and many Japanese keep a bottle of this favorite beverage with them nearly all the time.

Now, if this sounds like too much green tea for you, start slowly. Even drinking 2-3 cups a day may be beneficial for your health. You can work your way up to larger quantities over time.

Many people wonder if iced green tea is as beneficial as hot tea. And, the answer is yes; there is no difference in the health benefits whether you drink your tea hot or iced.

In addition, many people wonder about drinking flavored green teas. Green tea in its natural state has a bit of a grassy flavor that is unpleasant to some. So, many tea purveyors mix the green tea with fruit flavors to enhance the taste, and it’s just as healthy as drinking green tea straight.

My personal favorite right now is Republic of Tea’s Pomegranate Green tea. It’s delicious and I get the anti-oxidant benefits of both green tea and pomegranates.

There still much research that’s needed about the health benefits of drinking green tea. Hopefully, in a few years, we’ll know exactly how much we should drink and exactly what we can protect ourselves against, and what diseases we can treat with green tea. But for now, at least we can be confident that green tea is good for us, giving us an extra dose of those healthful anti-oxidants that keep us young and healthy.

Jon M. Stout is the Chairman of the Golden Moon Tea Company. Golden Moon Tea carefully selects the finest rare and orthodox teas, which are processed slowly and handcrafted with extreme care. At their website, you can learn more about their current

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Tags: breast cancer, cancer patient, prevent cancer, treatment of cancer

In this article, you will discover:

What is fibre?Why is fibre vital in the prevent breast cancer diet?

What Is Fibre?

All foods, which you consume, which are derived from plants contain fibre, typically:

Cellulose HemicelluloseLigninPectinsGums
This fibre is passed undigested through your small intestines.

The following foods are good sources of fibre:

VegetablesFruitsPulsesNutsSeedsCereals
Research has shown that a high fibre diet can reduce the development of certain health conditions, one being breast cancer.

Why Is Fibre Vital In The Prevent Breast Cancer Diet?

Including high amounts of fibre is vital in the prevent breast cancer diet because research has shown that insoluble fibre from whole grains, such as those present in wholegrain bread, can delay the development of breast cancer in animals.

Other studies have found that this also relates to people, women who consume a lot of whole grains are less likely to develop breast cancer, especially young women.

It is thought that young women, whose diet is high in whole grains, are less likely to develop breast cancer than older women.

This is because fibre lowers oestrogen levels in premenopausal women, but not in postmenopausal women.

Apart from lowering oestrogen, the substances phytate and isoflavones present in fibre are believed to protect against breast cancer.

So, to sum up…

Including high amounts of fibre within your diet is a good idea to prevent breast cancer.

Breast cancer in postmenopausal women is known to be partly caused by estrogen, fibre is known to help the body removed and lower high amounts of estrogen.

To prevent breast cancer, it is best to have a high fibre and low fat diet. This is why vegetarians are less likely to develop breast cancer.

Stewart Hare C.H.Ed Dip NutTh

newbeingnutrition.com/breast-cancer.htm Download ‘How To Protect Against Breast Cancer Naturally’ Free E-book

Website: newbeingnutrition.com/wordpress/ NewBeingNutrition.com

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Tags: breast cancer