Treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation with their plentiful significant side-effects should be administered only after careful deliberation of the potential benefit they can have for the patient. Selection criteria for radiotherapy after surgery in the elderly have been refined and subgroups identified, in whom radiotherapy may safely be avoided. This article provides an insight into treatment considerations for older patients.
An estimated 64% of sexually active women in their reproductive years (between the ages of 15 and 49) make use of contraception worldwide. Hormonal contraceptives have well-known side effects such as venous thrombo-embolism, migraines, dizziness and fatigue. A study performed in Denmark and published in the NEJM(New England Journal of Medicine) in 2017 found its way into media and seemed to also draw a correlation between increased breast cancer risk and the use of hormonal contraceptives. This article unpacks those findings.
Although seen as a predominantly female disease, breast cancer affects men too. The risk is low, particularly in comparison to other common cancers. The National Cancer Registry states that the lifetime risk of suffering breast cancer in males is between 1 in 500 to 1 in 1000, depending on race. Men at any age may develop breast cancer, but it is usually detected in men between 60 and 80 years of age. The significance of early detection is stressed, as that vastly improves the chances of surviving any type of cancer. In this article are some of the most crucial facts about breast cancer in men.
Many South Africans are still unaware of what the thyroid is and what to look out for when it comes to thyroid health, being armed with the facts greatly increases the opportunity for early detection and diagnosis, which are a patient’s best chance for recovery.
More women are postponing childbearing until they have finished tertiary education, are established in their careers, and have formed stable relationships. For women who have not yet finished family planning, a breast cancer diagnosis has profound implications on their ability to have a child. While breast cancer itself does not have any known effect on fertility, the treatment of it does. Some of the implications and important factors that women should be aware of when undergoing treatment and wanting to fall pregnant are outlined in this article.
Our doctors Justus Apffelstaedt and Fatima Hoosain (specialist surgeons with an interest in breast, thyroid, and parathyroid health as well as soft tissue surgical oncology) stress the importance of being prepared for treatment post a breast cancer diagnosis. Whilst the physical side effects of treatment are generally fully discussed, it’s as important for all cancer patients to prepare for the psychological impact of their treatment and the long-term physical realities.
Unlike post-partum depression, post-partum thyroiditis has not received as much attention and many pregnant women are unaware that this should be something to look out for too.
Having breast cancer does not put you at a higher risk of getting cervical cancer, nor does having one cancer omit you from developing another unrelated cancer. For that reason, it is of utmost importance for anyone with a cervix [...]
The treatment of breast cancer goes far beyond merely eliminating the cancer. Oncologists now understand that surgical treatments and radiotherapy must be integrated.
Staging breast cancer is an integral part of the patient's journey in understanding their disease. It allows the patient and their medical team to have a better look at the progression of the disease: how large the tumour is, and whether the cancer has spread locally in the breast or in other organs or tissues in the patient's body, as well as helping the patient understand their survival chances.
It is thought that diet is partly responsible for approximately 30% to 40% of all cancers, however, diet alone is not likely to prevent cancer as there are other elements involved such as genetics and environmental factors.
There are numerous lifestyle changes one can make to decrease the risk of developing breast cancer without changing their birth control and these are unpacked in this article.