Breast cancer, diagnosis, treatments and effects in pregnant women

Abstract

Breast cancer is the most frequent malignancy associated with child-bearing women. There are 5 stages of breast cancer; the progression increases with an increase in negligence or delays in treatment. The effects of pregnancy on the development of breast cancer are complex and poorly understood. It is therefore essential to develop a deeper understanding of the factors associated with pregnancy-associated breast cancer (PABC). With pregnancy, it is a little more difficult to detect and also proffer treatment for breast cancer. The breasts usually get larger, tender, or lumpy in pregnant women, nursing, or have just given birth. The breasts may also become denser. There are different kinds of treatments based on the stage and age of patients. The changes in the breast with pregnancy make it difficult to detect it on time, this is because clinicians and even the patients may mistake the symptoms of breast cancer for the usual variations experienced in the breast during gestation and breastfeeding. In addition, physiologic changes that occur during pregnancy make radiographic evaluation difficult. The chapter includes different risks, diagnoses, symptoms, prevention, treatment, and also other alternatives for pregnancy for women with breast cancer.