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Breast cancer

Tuesday 1 September, 2009

See also our genetics and breast cancer, breast cancer trials and breast health pages.

Breast tissue

Women's breasts produce milk after pregnancy.

Breast tissue is made up of milk glands, supportive fibrous tissue, fatty tissue, arteries, veins, lymph vessels and nerves. The milk glands consist of lobules, where milk is made, and ducts, which take the milk to the nipple. In women, breasts develop and change throughout life under the influence of the hormones normally produced by the ovary.

Men also have breast tissue.

Breast cancer

Breast cancer starts in the ducts or lobules of the breast. Cells lining the ducts or lobules can grow out of control and develop into cancer.

Some breast cancers are found when they're still confined to the ducts or lobules of the breast. This is called pre-invasive breast cancer. The most common types are ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) and lobular carcinoma in situ (LCIS).

Most breast cancers are found when they're invasive. This means the cancer has spread outside the ducts or lobules of the breast into surrounding tissue. The most common types are invasive ductal cancer (IDC) and invasive lobular cancer (ILC).

There are several categories of invasive breast cancer.

Early breast cancer: contained in the breast but may have spread to one or more lymph nodes in the armpit.
Locally advanced breast cancer: cancer cells may have spread to places near the breast, such as the chest (including the skin, muscles or bones of the chest), but the cancer isn't found in other areas of the body.
Metastatic breast cancer: cancer cells have spread from the breast to other areas of the body, such as the bones, liver or the lungs. This is also called advanced cancer.

Information on this site is about early breast cancer. For more on other categories of breast cancer, visit the National Breast and Ovarian Cancer Centre website or call our Cancer Council Helpline on 13 11 20.

Causes of breast cancer

The exact cause of breast cancer is not known. Some factors increase the risk:

getting older
having several close relatives, like a mother, sister or daughter, diagnosed with breast cancer - these relatives can be from either the mother's or father's side of the family
if you've had breast cancer before
if you've had certain breast conditions such as atypical ductal hyperplasia or lobular carcinoma in situ.

Having some of these risk factors doesn't mean that you'll develop breast cancer. Most women with breast cancer have no known risk factors, aside from getting older.

In men, breast cancer usually occurs over the age of 60. It's most common in men who have:

several close family members (male or female) who've had breast cancer
a relative diagnosed with breast cancer under the age of 40
several relatives with ovarian cancer or colon cancer
a rare genetic syndrome called Klinefelter's syndrome. Men with this syndrome have 3 sex chromosomes (XXY) instead of the usual 2 (XY).

Inherited breast cancer gene

A set of genes is inherited from each parent. Sometimes there's a fault in one copy of a gene, which stops that gene working properly. This fault is called a mutation.

A small number of breast cancers (about 5%) may be caused by an inherited gene fault. Two breast cancer genes have been found: BRCA1 and BRCA2. Women in families with an inherited gene change could also be at increased risk of ovarian cancer. Men in these families may also be at increased risk of breast cancer and prostate cancer.

People with a strong family history of breast cancer can be tested to see if they have inherited a gene change. If you'd like to know more about genetic testing, ask your doctor about the Victorian Family Cancer Genetics Service or call the Cancer Council Helpline on 13 11 20.

How common is breast cancer?

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in Australian women. One in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer by age 85. Around 13,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year.

Breast cancer can occur at any age. It's more common in women over 60 but around 25% of women are under 50.

Men can also develop breast cancer, although it's rare - around 110 men are diagnosed each year in Australia.

Men with breast cancer

Men who get breast cancer can feel especially isolated. There are lots of resources for women with breast cancer, but very few for men. Most breast cancer support groups are made up of women, and men who want to join can feel unwelcome. Just talking about having breast cancer can be hard, since it's generally seen as a ‘women's disease'.

Call the Cancer Council Helpline on 13 11 20 for help if you need to. The helpline can put you in touch with people who know about men and breast cancer, and who can offer support.

The Internet has some useful sites for men with breast cancer, including online support groups. Visit http://www.nbocc.org.au/men

Weblinks

The web can be a useful source of information. The following sites are reliable sources:

Australia:

Breast Cancer Network Australia

National Breast and Ovarian Cancer Centre

International:

Macmillan Cancer Support

National Cancer Institute

My Journey Kit:

Breast Cancer Network Australia have a online resource called My Journey Kit, which contains information, resources and tips for women newly diagnosed with breast cancer.

The kit has 3 main parts

an information guide to breast cancer
a personal record book for recording treatment details, and
a satchel to store copies of tests and other relevant treatment documents.

It also contains the National Breast and Ovarian Cancer Centre's Guide for women with early breast cancer. The free kit can be ordered online or by calling 1300 785 562.