Breast cancer management: The road to today

Abstract

When Cancer began publishing in 1948, 1 of the first articles to appear was a review of sex hormones and advanced carcinoma of the breast. Because little was then known about the biology of breast cancer, standard treatment was characterized by radical and disfiguring surgery, often with only a limited effect on long-term outcomes. Several pivotal developments in the ensuing 60 years changed this picture dramatically. The large tumors that were common at initial presentation in 1948 became increasingly uncommon with the growing use of screening mammography. It was soon suggested that these smaller tumors could be successfully treated with more conservative surgery, especially with the addition of multidrug chemotherapy and hormonal therapy as adjuvant treatments.These revolutionary developments, which have allowed many women to remain free of disease for extended periods of time, were chronicled in landmark papers that appeared in Cancer: the first clinical trial to determine whether screening mammography would improve outcomes, the early small trials comparing less invasive surgery with Halsted's radical mastectomy, the initial National Surgical

Stem cells in clinical practice: applications and warnings

“…In this phase symptoms include pain, swelling, warmth and redness throughout the breast, as well as an orange peel texture to the skin, referred to as "peau d'orange". Treatment includes surgery, drugs (hormonal therapy and chemotherapy), and radiation, which are effective against non metastatic forms [230]. SCT can increase survival in patients with spreading BR.…”

Effect of themicrobial lipopeptide on tumor cell lines: apoptosis induced by disturbing the fatty acid composition of cell membrane

“…Breast cancer has become a global concern (Singletary, 2008). Efforts in the field of chemotherapeutic treatments have led to the discovery of tamoxifen, cytotoxics paclitaxel and docetaxel, all of which show severe side effects (Marsh and McLeod, 2007).…”

Estrogen and non‐genomic upregulation of voltage‐gated Na+ channel activity in MDA‐MB‐231 human breast cancer cells: Role in adhesion

“…Breast cancer (BCa) is the most common malignancy of women in western countries, accounting for 10–15% of all female deaths from cancer (Jemal et al, 2008). Whilst BCa is curable if detected early and many advances have been made in understanding its pathophysiology, problems remain in its clinical management (Alberg et al, 1999; Singletary, 2008). Estrogen has long been known to be involved in development/progression of BCa (Ali and Coombes, 2002).…”