1.What is breast cancer
Breast cancer is a malignant tumor of the epithelial tissue of the breast. Like other cancers, it starts from abnormalities in the cells. Cancer cells are different from normal cells. One of its characteristics is uncontrolled reproduction, which does not have the function of normal mature cells and invades adjacent tissues indiscriminately, so that the structure and function of normal tissues are damaged. Another characteristic of cancer cells is low adhesion, which can be shed from the tumor and metastasize to distant tissues or organs via blood vessels or lymphatic vessels. Therefore, in the advanced stage of breast cancer, not only the local lesions of breast and chest wall are quite serious, but also the cancer will metastasize to important organs such as liver, lung, bone and brain, which will bring more serious harm to human body and even endanger life.
2.Breast cancer and heredity
It has been found that the incidence of breast cancer is three times higher than that of the average person with a family history of breast cancer, and the average age of breast cancer in the second generation of breast cancer patients is about 10 years earlier than that of the average person. However, it is important to emphasize that breast cancer is not directly inherited, but is a “cancer quality” inheritance, a genetic susceptibility to breast cancer (i.e., a predisposing factor for breast cancer), rather than breast cancer itself. Breast cancer is not an inevitable hereditary disease, and relatives of breast cancer patients do not necessarily have breast cancer, but are more likely to develop breast cancer than the general population. The occurrence of breast cancer is also related to other factors, such as fertility, diet, endocrine, etc. Only the combined effect of multiple factors will make breast cancer occur.
3.Breast cancer and mental factors
The mental state of a person has a certain relationship with the occurrence of breast cancer. Long-term anxiety, worry and sadness can increase the incidence of breast cancer. The possibility of mental factors leading to the occurrence of breast cancer mainly works through the suppression of the autoimmune system and endocrine changes. Long-term excessive mental stress can lead to the dysregulation of the two basic processes of excitation and inhibition of the cerebral cortex and increase the secretion of adrenal cortical hormones. Corticosteroids have a significant immunosuppressive effect, thus weakening the autoimmune system and creating an internal environment conducive to the development of breast cancer. Endocrine disorders cause abnormal secretion of sex hormones, and the occurrence of breast cancer is closely related to estrogen. Therefore, mental factors can affect the occurrence of breast cancer.
4.Breast cancer and dietary factors
There is a certain relationship between breast cancer and dietary factors. Although it is not clear how dietary factors affect the occurrence of breast cancer and its mechanism of action, numerous studies have confirmed that high fat, high animal protein and low fiber diets are important factors that cause breast cancer. According to statistics, in areas with high incidence of breast cancer, food is mainly high in fat and protein; while in areas with low incidence of breast cancer, people’s diet is often starchy and vegetarian.
5.Breast cancer and obesity
It is found that the incidence of breast cancer is higher in overly obese people than in non-obese people, and those who gain weight too fast after menopause and are overly obese are more likely to suffer from breast cancer. The root cause of obesity and cancer is fat. There are three reasons why fat promotes the occurrence of breast cancer.
(1) It suppresses the body’s immune function. Fat increases free fatty acids and cholesterol in the blood, and the increase of free fatty acids and cholesterol inhibits cellular immunity, reticuloendothelial system, and macrophage function, thus inhibiting the immune response and making cancer cells easily produced and increased.
(2) It provides a delivery vehicle for fat-soluble carcinogens in the environment, which increases the amount of carcinogens in the body, thus increasing the likelihood of inducing breast cancer.
(3) Provide a source for certain carcinogenic enhancers. In addition, excessive obesity also makes breast cancer easily metastasized. This is because obese people generally have high blood lipids.
(4) The presence of excess fat provides a place for excess estrogen.
6.Breast cancer and menstruation and childbirth and breastfeeding
The occurrence of breast cancer is closely related to menstrual history, childbirth and breastfeeding factors. The earlier the menarche, the higher the risk of breast cancer. The risk of breast cancer increases by 4 to 5 years with each earlier age of menarche. Those who have their menarche at the age of 14 and above are 20% less likely to develop breast cancer than those under the age of 12. In addition, late menopause also increases the incidence of breast cancer, and the incidence of breast cancer in menopausal patients over 55 years of age is one time more than in those who menopause before 45 years of age. Surgical removal of the ovaries and menopause can reduce the incidence of breast cancer. Women who have had children are less likely to develop breast cancer than women who have not had children, and the more children they have, the less likely they are to develop breast cancer. The age of the first child is also important, as women who are younger at the time of childbirth have a lower risk of breast cancer, and those who have their first child over 30 years of age have a higher chance of developing breast cancer. Women who breastfeed less frequently and for a longer period of time have a higher risk of breast cancer than those who breastfeed normally. Interruption of breastfeeding or inability to breastfeed due to mastitis or breast abscess can increase the risk of breast cancer. The reason for the lower incidence of breast cancer in Japan and China is that Japanese and Chinese women have the habit of breastfeeding for a long time, while Westerners have less breastfeeding and therefore have a higher chance of breast cancer.
7.Breast cancer and endocrine disorder
The normal human body is in a relative balance under the regulation of endocrine system and nervous system. Under various pathological conditions, endocrine dysfunction may occur and affect the hormone level in the body.
8.Breast cancer and human rabbit immunity
Human immunity is the ability of human immune system to identify and exclude foreign substances in order to maintain the physiological balance and stability of human body. Foreign substances include bacteria, viruses and many other non-normal tissue cell components of the human body. Normal human immunity is resistant to cancer. As we age, the whole body functions gradually decline and the immune function is affected, so the incidence of cancer is higher in the elderly.
9.Breast cancer and breast trauma
A few breast cancer patients have a history of breast trauma before the discovery of breast lumps, so they worry whether breast cancer is due to breast trauma. Currently, it is believed that there is no direct link between the occurrence of breast cancer and trauma. Traumatic fat necrosis of the breast is the result of trauma to the breast. The necrosis is surrounded by scar tissue and the fat in the center liquefies to form a cystic mass with poorly defined margins. As the disease progresses, the necrotic fatty tissue fibroses, making the lesion a hard mass or even calcified. Sometimes after complete fibrosis of necrotic fatty tissue, various symptoms of regression will appear, which are manifested as depression and adhesion of the surface skin, and can also cause nipple invagination, which can be easily misdiagnosed as breast cancer, and a biopsy of the breast lump can be done to clarify the pathological diagnosis.
10.Breast cancer and contraceptive pill
There are many contraceptive measures, such as contraceptive devices, surgical contraception and drug contraception. Among them, drug contraception is one of the main contraceptive methods because it is easy to use, has a low failure rate and can restore the ability to conceive quickly. The occurrence of breast cancer is related to the imbalance of endocrine balance in human body, among various endocrine factors, the most important one is estrogen and progesterone. Birth control pills are mainly estrogen there are some people worry about getting breast cancer, in fact, there is no necessary connection (this is the official language, I personally have reservations).
Huang said: another topic unrelated to the pill, long-term hormone replacement therapy still increases the increased risk of breast disease, I hope that middle-aged women in hormone replacement therapy at the same time and later regular breast examination.