If you have not yet been diagnosed with breast cancer

For those who have not been diagnosed with breast cancer, the National Cancer Institute states the best way to protect yourself against breast cancer is through early detection with self breast exams and regular screening mammograms. Treatment for breast cancer is more likely to work well when it is detected early. A mammogram can often show a lump before it can be felt. Women in their 40s and older should have mammograms every 1 or 2 years. Women who are younger than 40 and have risk factors for breast cancer should ask their health care provider whether to have mammograms and how often to have them.

If your mammogram shows an abnormal area of the breast, your doctor may order more detailed images of the area. Doctors use diagnostic mammograms to learn more about unusual breast changes, such as a lump, pain, changes in breast size or shape. There are also other imaging tests that may be ordered if an abnormal area is found. An ultrasound test may show whether a lump is solid, filled with fluid (a cyst), or a mixture of both. Cysts usually are not cancer but a solid lump may be cancer. An MRI is another way to get detailed pictures of breast tissue.

The only way to be absolutely sure if cancer is present is to perform a biopsy. Your doctor may refer you to a surgeon or breast disease specialist for a biopsy. The surgeon or doctor will remove fluid or tissue from your breast in one of several ways:

• Fine-needle aspiration biopsy: Your doctor uses a thin needle to remove cells or fluid from a breast lump.
• Core biopsy: Your doctor uses a wide needle to remove a sample of breast tissue
• Skin biopsy: If there are skin changes on your breast your doctor may take a small sample of skin.
• Surgical biopsy: Your surgeon removes a sample of tissue
  

A pathologist will check the tissue or fluid removed from your breast for cancer cells. If cancer cells are found, the pathologist can tell what kind of cancer it is. The most common type of breast cancer is ductal carcinoma. It begins in the cells that line the breast ducts. Lobular carcinoma is another type. It begins in the lobules of the breast.

If you are diagnosed with breast cancer, your doctor may order special lab tests on the breast tissue that was removed. It may take several weeks to get the results of these tests. The test results help your doctor decide which cancer treatments may be options for you.

The National Cancer Institute provides a booklet about diagnosis, treatment choices by stage, breast reconstruction, and follow-up care. It also describes how to take part in research studies. Learning about medical care of breast cancer can help you take an active part in making the right choices about your care.

http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/wyntk/breast/page1

The NCI provides publications about cancer, including the booklets and fact sheets mentioned in this booklet. You may order these publications by telephone, on the Internet, or by mail. You may also read them online and print your own copy.

• By telephone – People in the United States and its territories may order these and other NCI publications by calling the NCI Cancer Information Service at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237)
• On the Internet: Many NCI publications may be viewed, downloaded, and ordered from http://www.cancer.gov/publications
• On the internet. People in the United States and its territories may use their website to order printed copies. Their website also explains how people outside the United States can mail or fax their requests for NCI booklets.
• By mail: NCI publications may be ordered by writing to the address below:
  
  Publications Ordering Service National Cancer Institute
• P.O. Box 24128
  Baltimore, MD21227