Breast tissue density’s role in detecting breast cancer

Key findings- 

• Scientists have long known that dense breast tissue is linked to an increased risk of breast cancer in women.

• Scientists at Washington University in St. Louis analyzed breast density changes over a 10-year period in 10,000 women who were free of cancer when the study started. 
• Some 289 women were diagnosed with breast cancer in that time; the study compared changes in their breast tissue to those in 658 similar women who did not develop breast cancer.
• Breast density was higher from the start in the women who went on to develop breast cancer, and density declined in all women over time. But when each breast’s density was measured separately, scientists found a significantly slower decline in density in breasts that developed cancer, when compared with the other breast in the same patient.

Significance of the findings-

• The findings might provide an individualized and dynamic tool for assessing a woman’s breast cancer risk. 
•  Breast density is now an acknowledged risk factor for breast cancer, albeit one of many. Dense tissue also makes tumors harder to detect in imaging scans.
• Dozens of states have started requiring mammography centres to notify women if they have dense breast tissue. . But this is the first study to measure changes in density over time and to report a link to breast cancer.
• Although women are provided the information about breast density and the risks associated with it, the study suggests that information could be better used.

About breast cancer-

• Breast cancer is a disease in which cells in the breast grow out of control. There are different kinds of breast cancer. 
• It can occur in women and rarely in men.
• Women who have inherited changes (mutations) to certain genes, such as BRCA1 and BRCA2, are at higher risk of breast and ovarian cancer
• Symptoms of breast cancer include a lump in the breast, bloody discharge from the nipple and changes in the shape or texture of the nipple or breast.
• Its treatment depends on the stage of cancer. It may consist of chemotherapy, radiation, hormone therapy and surgery.

Further reading: https://journalsofindia.com/carboplatin-drug-to-treat-breast-cancer/