Before talking about the four treatments for breast cancer in depth, it is important to know that the variety of cancerous tumours is considerably extensive. There are four subcategories of the disease and, therefore, measures must be taken according to each diagnosed case in order for the treatments to be successful. It is important to remember beforehand that the responses to treatments vary from one woman to another, due to the unique metabolism traits of each organism.

Diagnostics for screening

The prognosis is of the utmost importance to know what type of tumour the patient has, as the medical interventions differ according to the specificity of the nodule, its degree of invasion into other cellular tissues, the time it has been in the patient's body, among other factors detected by chance.    

There are four subcategories of breast cancer:

- luminous A and B;

- HER-2;

- triple-negative.

Although there are specific treatments for each type of disease, when it comes to triple-negative, what we have so far is research to find exclusive methods to promote its regression. However, for now, the difficulty in treating it makes it the most aggressive of all.

The four treatments of breast cancer

Below, see in detail each solution that medicine brings to patients suffering from breast cancer:  

1. Surgery

Once the lump has been diagnosed as malignant and the carcinoma has been specified, surgery is currently established as the first treatment for breast cancer.

By means of a limited ablation - removal - the maximum preservation of the breast is sought. Lymph nodes located under the arm are also removed.

In the case of lymph nodes invaded by cancer cells, a complementary therapeutic resource must be integrated. For each type of tumour, a different surgical technique will be applied.

In cases where there is risk of metastasis, or when it has already occurred, a radical mastectomy - complete removal of the breast - is indicated in order to protect the patient's health.

2. Radiotherapy

Radiotherapy is a local treatment in which radiation is applied to the area affected by cancer cells. It is a procedure taken after surgery to preserve the breast in order to prevent new cancer cells.

And, in case a surgery has shown several invaded ganglions, treatment is applied, in order to irradiate to the ganglion areas, in order to regress their proliferation.

The patient will also be submitted to radiotherapy in the case of surgery that was not sufficient to remove all the nodules, or when surgery is not possible.

3. Chemotherapy

One of the best known breast cancer treatments, chemotherapy, is not a local treatment, but rather a dosage of one or more drugs, which pass through the whole body, and may be indicated by the doctor in charge to be done before or after surgery, according to the case and stage of the disease.

It is administered intravenously and aims to destroy the cancerous cells that still remain in the body, as well as to regress metastases that cannot be removed by surgery.

In most cases, treatment is post-surgical. If the tumour cannot be removed completely, chemotherapy is also indicated to reduce its size.

4. Hormone therapy

It is one of the most widely used breast cancer treatments, as it is administered in common cases of the disease, such as luminal carcinoma A and B. It is medication in tablet or injection form, in order to inhibit hormonal actions that help in the division and proliferation of cancer cells.

The inhibition is efficient when verified by exams, that is, when hormones such as estrogen, for example, stop attaching themselves to the surface of the cancer cell. If they are not prevented, these hormones favour the multiplication of cancer, because an abnormal cell sensitive to estrogen multiplies, forming other cells of the malignant tumour.

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Sources:

https://www.femama.org.br/2018/br/noticia/cancer-de-mama-triplo-negativo

https://www.inca.gov.br/tipos-de-cancer/cancer-de-mama/profissional-de-saude

http://www.oncoguia.org.br/conteudo/voce-ja-ouviu-falar-em-cancer-de-mama-triplo-negativo/12598/7/

http://www.oncoguia.org.br/conteudo/cancer-de-mama-receptores-de-hormonios/10879/264/

https://www.espacodevida.org.br/seu-espaco/clinico/conheca-os-quatro-subtipos-de-cancer-de-mama-e-as-estrategias-de-tratamento-para-cada-um-deles