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Breast Cancer

Anne Campbell Larkin, MD Reviewed 04/2024
 


BASICS

Most commonly diagnosed cancer (CA) in women and the second most common cause of CA death for U.S. women. Females have a ~2.5% or 1 in 39 chance of dying from breast cancer in the U.S. 

DESCRIPTION

DIAGNOSIS

HISTORY

  • Painless lump in breast or axilla; swelling, thickening, redness, or dimpling of the skin

  • Nipple discharge (serous, serosanguineous, or bloody), erosion, or retraction

PHYSICAL EXAM

  • Visu...

TREATMENT

MEDICATION

  • Neoadjuvant chemotherapy: Locally advanced (large tumor and/or positive lymph nodes), early operable BC to facilitate breast conservation surgery, triple negative BC and tumor size...

ONGOING CARE

FOLLOW-UP RECOMMENDATIONS

  • Every 4 to 6 months for 5 years and then annually

  • No evidence for routine complete blood count, LFTs, “tumor markers,” bone scan, chest x-ray, liver US, CT scans, ...

REFERENCES

1
American Cancer Society. About Breast Cancer. Atlanta, GA: American Cancer Society; 2023. 

CODES

ICD10

  • C50.52 Malignant neoplasm of lower-outer quadrant of breast, male

  • C50.929 Malignant neoplasm of unspecified site of unspecified male breast

  • C50.812 Malignant neoplasm of overlapping sites of ...

CLINICAL PEARLS

  • U.S. women; 1 in 8 develop BC in within their lifetime, of those 1 in 3 become metastatic

  • Alcohol consumption, high body mass index (BMI) after menopause, and physical inactivity are mo...

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