Breast Cancer Flashcards
(49 cards)
What are the highest risk factors of breast cancer for women?
- ≥60 years of age
- Family history
- Personal history of cancer (breast, colon, endometrial, ovarian)
- Early menarche or late menopause
- Full-term pregnancy >30 years of age
True or False
Having any first-degree relative with breast cancer increases a woman’s risk of breast cancer 1.5 to 3 times, depending on age.
• True
What are some other risk factors for breast cancer in women?
- Weight gain and obesity after menopause
- Exposure to ionizing radiation
- Combined hormone replacement therapy
Women who have BRCA-1 and BRCA-2 mutations have a __% to __% lifetime chance of developing breast cancer.
• 40% to 80%
A female patient presents with a persistent lesion of the nipple and areola w/ s/s of itching, burning and bloody nipple discharge. This is indicative of what condition?
• Paget’s Disease (of the breast)
What is the treatment for Paget’s Disease?
• Simple or modified radical mastectomy.
What indicates a good prognosis w/ Paget’s Disease?
• When it is confined to the nipple
What are some common s/s of breast cancer?
- Hard lump, Irregularly shaped, poorly delineated, non-mobile, non-tender
- Irritation or dimpling of breast skin (peau d’orange)
- Redness or flaky skin in the nipple area or the breast.
- Inverted nipple
- Nipple discharge other than breast milk, including blood.
- Any change in the size or the shape of the breast.
- Pain in any area of the breast.
On what location of the breast do most breast cancers occur?
• Upper lateral aspect of either breast
What are the clinical manifestations of a local breast cancer reoccurrence in the skin or chest wall?
• Firm discrete nodules, occasionally pruritic, usually painless, commonly in or near a scar
What are the clinical manifestations of a regional breast cancer reoccurrence?
• Enlarged nodes in axilla, supra clavicular area
Progressive back-pain, bowel and bladder function, and lower sensation loss can indicate distant metastasis in what location?
• Spinal cord
Headache described as different, unilateral sensory loss/weakness, ataxia, and N/V can indicate distant metastasis in what location?
• Brain
Shortness of breath, tachypnea, and cough can indicate distant metastasis in what location?
• Pulmonary
Abdominal distention/ascites Rt lower quadrant pain , nausea/vomiting, weight loss ,jaundice, peripheral edema can indicate distant metastasis in what location?
• Liver
Anemia, infection, weakness, increased bleeding and infection risk, petechiae, mild confusion, and dyspnea can indicate distant metastasis in what location?
• Bone marrow
Besides physical examination, what are diagnostic studies done for breast cancer?
- Mammography
- Ultrasound
- Biopsy
- MRI, if indicated
Why is lymphatic mapping performed w/ breast cancer?
• To see if there is any lymphatic involvement and if so, the extent
Why is a lymph node dissection performed?
• To remove any lymph nodes that may contain cancer cells and prevent metastasis
Is a well differentiated breast tumor more or less aggressive?
• Less
Breast cancer is rated from stage I to Stage IV. Describe stage 1 and stage 4.
- I: Small (<2cm) tumor w/ no lymph node involvement
* IV: Any size tumor w/ nodal involvement and distant metastasis
Lymphedema is a result what procedure associated w/ mastectomy?
• Axillary node dissection
What is lymphedema and what causes it?
- Accumulation of lymph in the soft tissues
- Cause: When axillary nodes cannot return lymph fluid to central circulation, fluid accumulates in arm, causing obstructive pressure on veins and venous return.
Lymphedema causes what other clinical manifestations?
- Pain
- Impaired motor function in arm
- Numbness
- Paresthesia of the fingers
