While abnormal and inexplicable pain is never a sign that everything is well within the body, that does not indicate the pain is an immediate sign of cancer. Breast pain can be caused by any number of things, such as accidents, normal hormone fluctuations and some prescription medications, so do not assume the worst unless it is paired with other corresponding symptoms or you have an unusually high risk of cancer from the start.
Breast cancer
Breast cancer affects one out of every eight women on average, but an individual's likelihood of developing this disease can be higher or lower depending on the presence of various risk factors associated with cancer. These include age (individuals over 50 have an increased risk), genetics (known defects in the BRAC1 and BRAC2 genes) and a family or personal history of breast cancer.
Cancer symptoms
The usual symptoms of breast cancer include changes in the size or shape of the breast, pus-like discharge from the nipple, and a lump located within the breast or the armpit. These are the traditional warning signs of breast cancer, so unless localized breast pain appears in conjunction with one or more of these, there is no likely cause for alarm.
Breast pain and cancer
According to the woman's health website WomentoWomen.com, breast pain is rarely a sign of breast cancer, as the initial stages of cancer are relatively pain-free. Where breast pain is an actual sign of the spread of cancer throughout the body, it is often associated not with the beginning stages but rather the more advanced stages of cancer. By this point, you would have likely noticed many other red flags (like the aforementioned symptoms) prior to the development of the breast pain itself.
Seeking medical aid
According to EMedicineHealth.com, medical attention is only necessary when the pain is prolonged for an unreasonable amount of time. Transient pain that appears and vanishes quickly is likely nothing, but repeated episodes of localized pain lasting for more than a few days should be investigated by your health-care practitioner.
Where breast pain is coupled with one or more risk factors for breast cancer, waiting for the pain to subside is not an option. If this is the case, make an appointment with your physician as soon as reasonably possible to have the underlying cause examined so that breast cancer can be ruled out as a possible diagnosis.
Treatments
Where breast pain is a direct result of cancer, several treatment options are available. According to the experts at Merek.com, a number of medications act to curb breast pain related to breast cancer by halting estrogen activity in the breast. As most cases of breast cancer are estrogen sensitive, this should work to alleviate symptoms. Common drugs used for this treatment include danazol and tamoxifen.
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