Breast Cancer - The Ways Of Detecting It

There are many different forms of cancer which people are now being diagnosed with and one of the most treatable of them is breast cancer. However in order for it be treated effectively then it is important that the disease is detected in its early stages of formation. In fact because there are a number of different ways in which this form of cancer can be detected it is considered to be a favorable form of cancer that can be treated and the person cured.

When it comes to detecting cancer of the breast in its early stages is by doing a breast examination or using a mammography as these are the more favored methods. In fact in studies carried out the smaller the breast cancer once it has been detected then there is a much higher chance the person with it will survive.

Certainly women are now being told it is extremely important that they carry out regular breast examinations on themselves as they will be more aware of any changes to their breasts. But also if there is a history of breast cancer in the family then having regular mammograms will help to ensure that detection of the disease can often be found during its much earlier stages of formation. In fact both examinations and mammograms are now used as the basis for detecting breast cancer in women today.

However many women will often ask the question "Just how often do I need to carry out a breast examination or get a mammogram done?" The answer to this is quite simple. For a breast examination a woman should be looking to arrange for her doctor to inspect them on a monthly basis or if she wants she can carry it out herself at home whilst say having a shower.

As for mammograms in the USA the ACS (American Cancer Society) recommend that women have their first mammogram when they reach the age of 40. This will then be used as a base reading and after this they will need to have a further mammogram test each year. However the ACS do suggest that with those women who are at a much higher risk of developing this form of cancer or suffer from any other type of breast problems. Then they should have their first mammogram at the age of 35.

The mammography is carried out using an x ray machine which is able to detect most forms of breast cancer in its very early stages, and can be used for detecting it in both women and men. Also the main advantage to using this way for detecting breast cancer is that it can detect when it is so small that using the more traditional type of breast examination would not.

Around 85 to 90% of all the breast cancer that is now being detected and thus treated has been done through the use of mammography. But not only is the number of women being detected and treated for this particular form of cancer increased but the number of women actually dying from it has reduced. In fact in those women who are over the age of 50 and have been diagnosed with having breast cancer today around 30% more are likely to survive.

Although using mammography does help to detect breast cancer in its very early stages in most women there are some around 10%-15% of women that this method of detecting this form of cancer can not help. So it is extremely important that all women learn the right way for carrying out a self examination of their breasts and what are the main signs to look for. It is preferable for a woman to carry out her own self examination as she will be more aware of any changes that take place in her body each month. Yet if she does not feel that she is able to carry out the examination properly or she has discovered something untoward then it is important that she arranges for her doctor to carry out a physical examination as well.