Posts Tagged ‘Informed’

Understanding Your Breasts: Making an Informed Decision

A woman’s breast is a gland that produces milk in late pregnancy and after childbirth. Each breast is made of lobes which are groups of milk glands called lobules. Lobules are arranged around thin tubes called ducts which carry the milk to the nipple. These lobules and ducts make up what is referred to as the glandular tissue.

As with any gland or organ within the human body, some imperfections are likely to occur. Perhaps you feel that your breasts are too small, poorly shaped, or maybe you have lost a breast to a disease like cancer.

Despite a decade of controversy over their safety, breast implants are more popular than ever among women who want to build upon what nature gave them or who want to restore what disease has taken away. Whatever the reason, opting for breast implants is a personal decision that should be made only after a woman fully understands and accepts the potential risks of the devices and the importance of follow-up evaluations with her physician.

According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), there were nearly 255,000 breast enhancement implant procedures performed in 2003, nearly twice the number done in 1998. An additional 68,000 women received breast implants for reconstructive purposes following mastectomy due to cancer or other disease.

Breast implants are designed for augmentation, a cosmetic procedure; reconstruction; and replacement of existing implants, called revision. There are two primary types of implants: saline-filled and silicone gel-filled.

Depending on the type of implant, the shell is either pre-filled with a fixed volume of solution or filled through a valve during the surgery to the desired size. Breast implants vary in shape, size and shell texture.

Some medical care providers say that using breast implants to rebuild the breast (reconstruction), or change its size and shape (augmentation), significantly improves the quality of life for many women. Advocates of breast implants also say that a woman’s consent to the surgery should be considered valid as long as she carefully weighs the risks and benefits of the procedure.

While every surgical procedure has potential risks, such as infection, bleeding, and scarring, there a some risks that are specific to breast implants–leakage from the implant, actual rupture of the implant, and nerve damage which causes some women a loss of sensation in their nipples and breast tissue. Learning about these specific risks is key to truly understanding the procedure.

If you need additional information about any issue concerning your breasts–whether it be a breast-feeding question or concerns about breast cancer– search the Internet to find hundreds of websites dealing with all issues pertaining to the human breast.

Ok I just had a biospy maybe a week ago where I learned that I had breast cancer Stage 1. I informed my boss.?

Maybe a day or two later we had the opportunity to renew insurance (which I do not have my husband has it, I only have life insurance through my job ). I asked my employer about getting short term disability she said because of my breast cancer diagnosis I could not get it. Is that legal? I have worked over two years for the company,.
I think my question was unclear. We had open enrollment (for all eimployees)for short term disability and she said I was ineligible for the coverage based on breast cancer diagnosis..

Be Informed, be Aware – Breast Cancer Awareness

 

Breast cancer is one of the common causes of death, talking about cancer in women. It is highly recommended that every woman should regularly check their breasts for some changes.

 

When checking out your breasts (only in the way that is comfortable to you, hereâ??s what you should keep an eye for:

 

â?¢ A new lump or hard knot found in your breast or armpit

â?¢ Dimpling, puckering or indention in your breast or nipple

â?¢ Change in the size, shape or symmetry of your breast

â?¢ Swelling or thickening of the breast

â?¢ Redness or scaliness of the nipple or breast skin

â?¢ Nipple discharge, especially any that is bloody, clear and sticky, dark or occurs without squeezing your nipple

â?¢ Changes in your nipple such as tenderness, pain, turning or drawing inward, or pointing in a new direction

â?¢ Any suspicious changes in your breasts

Breast examination â?? this is essential for early breast cancer detection. Here is the proper way of checking your breasts:

â?¢ First, look closely at your breasts. Stand in front of a mirror with your hands on the side.

â?¢ Facing forward, look for dimpling, puckering and any changes in size or shape.

â?¢ See if your nipples are inverted.

â?¢ Check your breasts with your arms in two other positions â?? hands raised overhead and hand on hips.

 

 

There are 3 types of breast-exam patterns â?? the clock pattern, sweeping pattern and the wedge pattern.

 

 

It is recommended to start breast examinations when women reach the age 20. It is also advisable to have their breast exam by a health professional every 3 years. Always remember that the best time to perform you breast exam is 1 week after the start of your monthly period.

 

But even if you regularly check your breasts doesnâ??t mean you are safe from breast cancer. In fact it doesnâ??t reduce the number of deaths caused by breast cancer. However, this can help every woman to detect the early stages of breast cancer and help them avoid it as soon as possible before it is too late. Self and clinical breast exams as well as mammography will help you increase your chances of detecting and finding breast cancer at an early and treatable stage.

 

 

Learn more about Breast Cancer by visiting www.mercola.com