DMochelle Fashions Magazine
September/October 2017
Breast Cancer Symptoms
Symptoms of breast cancer vary from person to person. Some common breast
cancer signs and symptoms include:
Skin changes, such as swelling, redness, or other visible differences in one
or both breasts
An increase in size or change in shape of the breast(s)
Changes in the appearance of one or both nipples
Nipple discharge other than breast milk
General pain in/on any part of the breast
Lumps or nodes felt on or inside of the breast
Symptoms more specific to invasive breast cancer are as follows:
Irritated or itchy breasts
Change in breast color
Increase in breast size or shape (over a short period of time)
Changes in touch (may feel hard, tender or warm)
Peeling or flaking of the nipple skin
A breast lump or thickening
Redness or pitting of the breast skin (like the skin of an orange)
Types of breast cancer
Breast cancer occurs in two broad categories: invasive and noninvasive.
Invasive (infiltrating) breast cancer: Cancerous cells break through normal
breast tissue barriers and spread to other parts of the body through the
bloodstream and lymph nodes.
Noninvasive (in situ) breast cancer: Cancerous cells remain in a particular
location of the breast, without spreading to surrounding tissue, lobules or
ducts.
Breast cancer is also classified based on where in the breast the disease started
(e.g., milk ducts, lobules), how the disease grows and other factors. The tabs
on the left provide an overview of common breast cancer types, common
subtypes and rare types.
Other types of breast cancer include sarcoma of the breast, metaplastic
carcinoma, adenocystic carcinoma, phyllodes tumor and angiosarcoma.
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