Breast+&+Ovarian+Cancer+-+Elizabeth+Higgins

Breast & Ovarian Cancer **Description: ** Cells are suppose to divide and grow to keep a body healthy. However, when cells divide more than normal, it becomes cancer. Mechanisms can stop working, which will allow the cells dividing at an alarming rate then this causes and creates tumors.

**Inheritance: ** Breast and ovarian cancer are passed on by genes. The BRCA1 gene and BRCA2 are tumor suppressors. They help stop and prevent uncontrolled growth, and the fix damage. If you receive one of these genes that are mutated, it will collect broken and deformed chromosomes; this then equals a greater chance of getting mutations that are linked to cancer. The BRCA1 is on chromosome 17, while the BRCA2 is on chromosome 13. Men are more likely to get breast and/or prostate cancer. Children with parents with mutated BRCA1 or BRCA2 have a 50% chance of inheriting the disease. **Pedigree Chart: ** **﻿ **

**Symptoms: ** Symptoms of ovarian cancer are bloating, pelvic and/or abdominal pain, trouble eating or feeling full quickly, frequently having the urge “to go”. More symptoms also include fatigue, upset stomach, and back pain, pain during sex, constipation and menstrual changes. Breast cancer symptoms are lumps, swelling, skin changes. However, most breast cancers don’t have any obvious symptoms.

**Diagnosis: ** Breast cancer is diagnosed by a hands on screening, or a clinical breast exam. This includes mammograms, MRIs, and pathology tests. Ovarian cancer is diagnosed by a transvaginal sonography; however, it may show some abnormal lies that are not really there, and don’t exist. You should always have the CA 125 test done, to make sure that you do not have any tumors growing.

**Treatment: ** Treatments for breast cancer are you could have a breast removed, this is called mastectomy, or a double mastectomy. The medicine tamoxifen to help get rid of it. If neither one of those intrest you, you could go to radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and antihormonal therapy.

Ovarian cancer’s treatment depends on age, overall health, extent of disease and other factors. It is normally surgically removed, this is called a salpingo-oophorectomy, hysterectomy and a pelvic lympth mode dissection.

**<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Interesting Facts: **

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<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">Livestrong, and Cancer Survivor Network are some of the many support groups.
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">Support Groups: **

<span style="font-family: 'Times','serif'; line-height: 115%;">[|www.cancerhopenetworks.org] <span style="font-family: 'Times','serif'; line-height: 115%;">[|www.heroku.com/LIVESTRONG] <span style="font-family: 'Times','serif'; line-height: 115%;">[|www.caring4cancer.com/go/breast/treatments] <span style="font-family: 'Times','serif'; line-height: 115%;">[|www.cancer.org] <span style="font-family: 'Times','serif'; line-height: 115%;">[|www.breastcancer.about.com] <span style="font-family: 'Times','serif'; line-height: 115%;">[|www.breastcancer.org/symtoms/] <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times','serif'; line-height: 115%;">[]
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