Breast cancer at 85

A risk factor is anything that increases your chances of getting a disease, such as breast cancer. But having a risk factor, or even many, does not mean that you are sure to get the disease. Some risk factors for breast cancer are things you cannot change, such as getting older or inheriting certain gene changes. These make your risk of breast cancer higher. This is the main risk factor for breast cancer.

Breast cancer classification divides breast cancer into categories according to different schemes criteria and serving a different purpose. The major categories are the histopathological type, the grade of the tumor, the stage of the tumor, and the expression of proteins and genes. As knowledge of cancer cell biology develops these classifications are updated. The purpose of classification is to select the best treatment. The effectiveness of a specific treatment is demonstrated for a specific breast cancer usually by randomized, controlled trials. That treatment may not be effective in a different breast cancer. Some breast cancers are aggressive and life-threatening, and must be treated with aggressive treatments that have major adverse effects.

Professional Reference articles are designed for health professionals to use. You may find the Breast Cancer article more useful, or one of our other health articles. NICE has issued rapid update guidelines in relation to many of these. This guidance is changing frequently. Breast cancer is by far the most common cancer in women and the second most common cause of death from cancer in the UK.

Breast cancer is the abnormal growth of the cells lining the breast lobules or ducts. These cells grow uncontrollably and have the potential to spread to other parts of the body. Transwomen, non-binary people can also get breast cancer. In , 17, women and men were diagnosed with breast cancer in Australia.