acini The microscopic group of glands in the breast where milk is formed

areola The pigmented area around the nipple. Its size and prominence vary from individual to individual and change during one's lifetime. It contains several smaller raised areas which are tiny normal glands, called "Montgomery follicles"

axilla The armpit. It contains lymph glands or nodes, lymph channels, blood vessels, and fat. It has direct connections with the breast

biopsy An operation of limited extent which removes a piece of breast for microscopic study and final diagnosis by a pathologist, a medical specialist trained in this type of examination

B. S. E. Breast self-examination, or inspection and palpation of the breasts by the woman herself

chemotherapy Treatment using special chemicals which have the ability to destroy cancer cells

clinical examination Inspection and palpation of the breasts by a physician or by a trained paramedical person

death or mortality rate The number of deaths in relation to population numbers, usually given per 100,000 population

ducts The channels in the breast that lead from the acini to the nipple. The small passages are called ductules. These branch and end up in a group of six to fifteen large ducts that converge and open on the nipple. Their function is to convey the milk to the baby

epidemiologist The specialist whose function is to gather data from many sources, often apparently unrelated, and use them to form explanations for the onset and development of diseases

estrogen One of the active female hormones that has a profound effect on the generative organs and breast. Its three main fractions are estradiol, estrone, and estriol

fatty tissue Fat which acts as support and cushion for the delicate glandular tissue of the breast. After the menopause, most glandular tissue is replaced by fat

fibrocystic disease A benign breast condition found in most women. It may vary in extent from minute microscopic cysts to large cysts filled with fluid. It accounts for the lumpy feeling that most breasts have. Aspirations of fluid or removal of the cyst for microscopic tissue diagnosis are often in order. Fibrocystic disease itself probably has no connection with cancer

fibrous tissue The firm supporting framework of the breast

glands A term used loosely to describe the functioning entity of many organs. The breast is referred to as a mammary gland. The lymph stations in the armpit are called axillary lymph glands, although they are actually lymph nodes. A glandular system refers to a group of glands having a similar function. The endocrine glandular system refers to that group of glands that produces hormones which have a widespread effect on the body, such as the ovaries, which are in the abdomen; the pituitary, which sits at the base of the brain; the thyroid, which rests on the trachea or windpipe; or the adrenals, which are located on top of the kidneys

glandular tissue When referring to the breast, all of the acini where milk is produced

hormone therapy The use of hormones or the substances produced by the endocrine glands for treatment of breast diseases

immunotherapy The use of highly complex vaccines to stimulate the protective mechanism of the body, which is part of our defensive apparatus against disease or foreign substances

interview In a specialized sense, this term refers to the gathering of information from an individual about her family as well as her personal, educational, menstrual, childbearing, and breast history. Such data from large groups of women help to pinpoint those factors which are important in the initiation and development of disease and to identify the risk of developing breast cancer

lumpectomy This is also called partial mastectomy or tylectomy. It is a surgical procedure in which only the breast cancer and a varying amount of breast tissue is removed as definitive treatment. The use of this procedure in the average woman has stirred a controversy among surgeons. It has a few staunch adherents who advocate it under varying specified conditions, and a host of opponents who regard it as reprehensible. A study of sufficient magnitude and prestige is necessary to resolve the issue

lymphatic system An extensive network in the body which carries lymph throughout it. The lymphatic system has a series of many lymph nodes or way-stations along its path which produce substances of immense benefit as part of the protective mechanism of the body against foreign material that produces disease. These lymph nodes act as a first line of defense in trapping cancer cells and destroying them. In breast cancer, the nodes most commonly involved are located in the armpit (the axillary nodes). Others are hidden under the breastbone (the internal mammary nodes) or above the collarbone (the supraclavicular nodes)

mammography A modern procedure which uses very small amounts of X rays to visualize the details of the breast structure. The examination is painless, quick, and easy. It takes but a few minutes and has become one of our most valuable studies because it gives us information about normal and abnormal changes in the breast tissues. The image produced is called a mammogram

mastectomy Surgical removal of the breast. There are various techniques in which more or less tissue is removed at the same time. Radical mastectomy, which has been the procedure most commonly used, involves the removal of the chest muscles (pectoralis major and minor) together with the lymph nodes in the armpit. Supraradical mastectomy adds to the procedure the removal of nodes under the breastbone. This operation is done by its proponents for cancers close to the breastbone when involvement of these nodes is more likely. Modified radical mastectomy refers to a variation in which the chest muscles are left intact but the armpit nodes are removed. In this operation these latter glands usually cannot be removed as thoroughly as in the radical mastectomy. The procedure, however, results in substantially less deformity and makes it easier to construct a breast prosthesis for a more normal appearance. Simple or total mastectomy involves only removal of the breast, including its extension into the fold of the armpit, but does not include any substantial exploration of the armpit itself

menopause The change of life, usually referring to the cessation of menstruation. It may have a gradual onset or be sudden. It is usually associated with physiological changes in the breast, with most of the breast structures eventually "involuting" or changing into fat

metastasis A colony of cancer cells established away from its original source. The most common spread from breast cancer is to the local lymph nodes, the bones of the body, the liver, the lungs, or the brain. It is this tendency of cancer to metastasize that accounts for its deadly effect

nodes Stations along the lymphatic channels of the body which are busy defending neighboring organs from disease or contamination

pectoral muscles Muscular tissues attached to the chest wall and to the upper arms. These are divided into a larger group called pectoralis major, and a smaller group called pectoralis minor. Together they account for the fullness we see in the chest below the collarbones. There are some nodes in intimate contact with these muscles. The muscles are removed in the operation called radical mastectomy, primarily to make investigation of the armpit more thorough

primary cancer Cancer arising in an organ initially—not as an extension or spread from a cancer at another site

radiation therapy The use of X rays in treatment of disease, usually cancer. Various devices are used to produce these X rays. The apparatus used, such as an X-ray machine, a cobalt bomb, or various sophisticated and highly technical machines called linear accelerators, betatrons, etc., is responsible for the strength or penetrability of the X rays and varies with the special needs of the cancer or the organ in which the cancer is situated. Basically, radiation therapy or X-ray treatment destroys rapidly growing cells, such as we find in cancer, more readily than it destroys normal cells. For this reason, such treatment is able to remove diseased cells without causing undue damage to surrounding normal cells

secondary cancer Cancer developing in an organ as a result of the dissemination of a colony of cancer cells from a primary cancer elsewhere. Such a cancer is seeded by way of the bloodstream or the lymphatic channels

specimen radiography The use of X rays to detect cancer in a biopsy specimen when it cannot be felt by the clinician. This procedure makes it possible to be sure that such a cancer has been removed and that the small area does indeed contain cancer cells. The area pinpointed by a specimen radiograph or X ray is then analyzed by the pathologist for a definite diagnosis. This procedure has proved to be invaluable in our attack on minimal or early breast cancer, which is often not palpable

survival rate Refers to the percentage of women surviving a set period of time—e.g., five years—after a surgical procedure. It is often used by surgeons or radiotherapists in comparing one type of treatment with another. It has a built-in fallacy, however: the survival rate depends on when in the course of the disease the cancer was initially detected. Thus, a cancer found earlier through one method or another may indicate apparently longer survival, but actually the end result may be occurring at the same time as it would have, were the cancer detected later on

thermography A method of detecting the heat radiation from the breast. The heat waves are picked up by a special heat sensor and translated into a heat photograph. It is a reflection of the functioning of the breast. Any increased activity in the breast due to inflammation or cancer may show up with increased-heat areas. Such areas are, however, not specific for cancer. Since this increased heat is transmitted through the skin directly or through the veins, the hot area may not coincide with the location of the cancer. Thermography is used primarily to alert the physician to a possibility of cancer which must be checked and located in other ways, such as by palpation or mammography

tylectomy A more erudite synonym for lumpectomy

xerography A form of mammography in which the image produced by the X-ray machine is displayed on a xerox selenium plate and subsequently transferred to a special paper, instead of using film

Samantha Peia

Samantha Peia is associated with http://www.FiveHeroes.com.

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