In Australia this year, it is estimated that almost 16,000 women, and 150 men, will be diagnosed with breast cancer.
According to the Breast Cancer Network Australia, this is the most common cancer diagnosed in Aussie women, with 43 of us being diagnosed with the life-threatening disease daily.
It is these shocking statistics that make new research surrounding breast cancer so important; the more we know and talk about it, the more we can act quickly in identifying, and treating, it.
Researchers from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and Germany’s University of Regensburg are suggesting that breast cancer cells can spread to organs and go undetected for long periods of time, before awakening to form “aggressive, deadly breast cancer metastasis”.
What this means is that researchers may now have found a reason for breast cancer metastasis forming without a primary tumour.
The researchers tested the very early stages of breast cancer, and from their findings, aim to adjust the way we look at, and treat, breast cancer metastasis.
“Our hope is that these findings will reshape the way we think about how metastasis should be treated,” says Julio A. Aguirre-Ghiso, professor of Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology at Icahn School of Medicine.
“While our findings add a whole new level of complexity to the understanding of cancer, they also add energy to our efforts to finally solve the big issue in cancer – stop the metastasis that kills patients.”
What are the signs and symptoms of breast cancer?
Besides a breast lump, which 83 per cent of diagnosed women brought to their doctors according to recent figures, women should also seek professional advice for:
• Nipple abnormalities including redness, crusting or clear/bloody discharge (seven per cent)
• Breast pain or discomfort (six per cent)
• Breast skin abnormalities (two per cent)
• Breast ulcerations (one per cent)
• Swelling or lump in the armpit (one per cent)
• Back or muscular pain (one per cent)
• Breathlessness (less than one per cent)
• Changes to the contour or shape of the breast (less than one per cent)
Early detection is vital and can save lives. If you’re experiencing any of the above symptoms, wish to find out more, or want to book in for a check-up, visit your local GP today.
