What is a breast cancer physical examination? The importance of breast cancer physical examination

Breast cancer has become a disease that seriously threatens women's health. Early detection and treatment are considered to be effective measures to improve the survival rate and reduce the mortality rate of breast cancer. So what is a breast cancer physical examination? What is the importance of a breast cancer physical examination?

The purpose of early detection of breast cancer is to reduce mortality and improve the quality of life. If a method can detect breast cancer early but cannot reduce mortality, such early detection has no practical significance. The following editor will tell you the importance of physical examination of "zero stage" breast cancer in women. If you want to know, come and have a look.

What is a breast cancer screening?

The female breast is composed of skin, fibrous tissue, mammary gland and fat. Breast cancer is a malignant tumor of the mammary epithelial tissue. 99% of breast cancer occurs in women and 1% in men. Breast cancer physical examination is a method of checking breast cancer. It uses X-ray or MRI to find the source of the disease and eliminate breast cancer at "stage zero", greatly improving the survival rate of breast cancer and reducing the mortality rate of women.

Importance of Breast Cancer Screening

There are several commonly used breast cancer examinations. One is to detect breast cancer early through regular self-examination. The second is X-ray examination, which was called plate photo or molybdenum target photo in the past. Another is MRI examination. The key indicator to evaluate whether these methods can be used as early detection methods for breast cancer is whether they can reduce the mortality rate. Experts recommend that women should pay attention to breast health from the age of 20, perform breast self-examination every month, and go to the hospital for regular professional breast examinations.

Breast cancer is clinically divided into four stages, but there is actually a stage called "stage zero" breast cancer. Stage zero breast cancer can only be detected through mammography or X-ray examinations. In order to detect stage zero breast cancer as soon as possible, experts recommend that women over 40 years old, especially those at high risk of breast cancer, undergo mammography or X-ray examinations every year. If breast cancer can be detected early, more than 90% of patients can survive for a long time; if it is stage 0 breast cancer, that is, carcinoma in situ, it can basically be cured, but the survival rate will be greatly reduced in the middle and late stages.

Women over 20 years old should perform breast self-examination once a month; women aged 20 to 39 years old should have an outpatient breast examination every 3 years; women over 40 years old should have an outpatient breast examination once a year and take their own mammogram for reference; women aged 40 to 49 years old should have a mammogram every 1 to 2 years; women over 50 years old should have a mammogram once a year.

Early detection and diagnosis of breast cancer is the key to improving the efficacy of treatment. The diagnosis and differential diagnosis of breast cancer should be carried out in combination with the patient's clinical manifestations, medical history, physical examination, imaging examination, histopathology and cytopathology examination (in hospitals with conditions).

Most patients come to the hospital accidentally after discovering a breast lump, and a few patients discover breast lumps or suspicious lesions through regular physical examinations or screening. Needle aspiration biopsy or surgical excisional biopsy can confirm the diagnosis of palpable lumps. If the lump cannot be touched clinically, suspicious lesions can be found through imaging examinations, and biopsy can be performed by positioning through imaging examinations. Pathological examination is the gold standard for breast cancer diagnosis.