Breast Cancer Analysis - Research Paper Example

? Research Utilization Valerie Blemur Florida International NUR 3666 Evidence-Based Nursing and Research in Global Health Care November 19, 2012 Abstract Cancer has been in existence for as long as the study of the human body has existed. It has proven to be deadly, especially if undiagnosed in its early stages of development inside the human body. Basically, all countries of the world have numerous cases of cancerous deaths to report annually. For this reason, every fourth day of February, the world observes Global Cancer Day. This is a day set aside to educate the human race about cancer. Cancer manifests itself by attacking the human tissue. This happens in different forms and kinds, including in the breast. Cancer that affects the breast is called breast cancer. This is one of the most prevalent forms of cancer. Although breast cancer is said to have been first reported in Egypt around 122 B.C, there are no accurate statistics that can clearly prove its earliest reported cases. However, according to the journal, Phenomenal Woman, Hippocrates was the first to give a logical and medical explanation of breast cancer in 460 B.C (2008). This development was further expanded by the works of Galen at around 200 A.D. Since then, more studies and medical research have been done to discover explicit knowledge about the disease. Breast cancer is caused by a number of factors commonly called breast cancer risk factors. Breast Cancer Breast cancer is one of the types of cancers. It manifests itself in the breast. It originates from the milk ducts or lobules of the breast. Although it typically occurs in women, breast cancer can also attack men as well. Breast cancer occurs in the form of a lump on the breast or the side of an armpit. This lump contains thick tissue which is not uniform with the rest of the breast tissue. It can be noticed by simply touching the breast gently to feel the thickness of its inner tissue. Another way of detecting breast cancer is through the observation of any abnormal growth or development in the breast. Such abnormalities are physically observable features of a breast. For instance, some breast cancer cells cause the nipple of one breast to be inverted in such a way that it seems to grow towards the inside of the breast rather than the normal way of growing towards the outside. There could also be skin dimpling or change in skin color at the part of the breast where cancer has attacked the breast tissue. One of the breast cancer risk factors is the transfer of genes responsible for certain types of cancers from parent to child. Breast cancer can be passed from a child bearer to the baby. This means that the breast cancer cells can be passed from one generation to another through the genes. In such cases, if a mother or father has breast cancer cells, then they can be passed to their offspring or to subsequent generations of their offspring. Another major cause of breast cancer is contributed to lifestyle. This means that the way people conduct their day to day activities has an influence on their chances of getting or preventing breast cancer. Smoking of tobacco has been identified as one of the major lifestyle causes of breast cancer. Lack of breast feeding after child birth also increases a woman’s chances of suffering from breast cancer. In addition to that, abortion also increases the chances of a woman suffering from breast cancer. A poorly conducted abortion procedure can easily result in breast cancer. Breast cancer is typically classified on a number of bases. For instance, when classified according to origin, we have ductal cancer and lobular cancer. Ductal originates from milk ducts while lobular cancer originates from lobules. When classified according to the stage of the development and spread of the cancer cells, the TNM system is used. The level T is when the cancer cells have only attacked the armpit. The level N is when the cancer cells have spread from the armpits to the whole breast while the level M is when the cancer has spread to other body parts, for example the stomach. Other bases for classifying cancer are based on their receptors and their DNA. The reason why breast cancer has the attention of the whole world is because of its adverse effects on people. If detected in its early stages, cancer can be treated using therapies. However, if undetected, it can cause severe damage to breast tissue which could result in the removal of the affected breast. In such cases, the victim loses the whole breast. Apart from the physical effect, the breast has been proven, according to Phenomenal Woman, to cause extreme psychological suffering for the victims (2008); this is especially common in women. It reduces their self-esteem and in other cases causes some form of depression. The financial costs of treating breast cancer are also high. This means that the victim has to raise a lot of money for regular therapies or surgeries to eliminate the cancerous cells. However, if detected early enough, breast cancer can be treated effectively. Once detected, the lump can be removed through administration of drugs or through therapies commonly known as chemotherapy and hormonal therapy. A surgery can also be done to remove the lump and reduce its risk of spreading. Even though treatment is available, most people are advised to take measures that would ensure early detection and prevention of the disease. Such measures include regularly touching one’s own breasts to note for any changes in tissue texture or any changes in skin color and appearance. Mammogram screening is also advised. This is a medical service where professional doctors observe the breast to detect any chances of breast cancer. Breast cancer is crucial to nursing in many ways. Not only are nurses directly in charge of breast cancer patients in hospitals, they are also responsible for ensuring that patients discharged from hospitals due to breast cancer have an adequate supply of their medication. Nurses are also in charge of ensuring that the health status of discharged patients is regularly monitored so that they can be given appropriate medical treatments whenever a need arises. Whenever an extreme case of cancer spread is noted in the breast, the doctor is required to perform a surgery as soon as possible. During such an operation, the nurse is directly responsible for ensuring that the physician has all the resources for the surgical procedure to take place. Therefore, nursing is an integral part of the process of breast cancer detection, examination and treatment. This supports the idea that a nurse should have relevant and appropriate knowledge about breast cancer. In America, breast cancer can be said to be one of the diseases that contributes high numbers to the mortality rate statistics. Although physicians understand the disease fairly well, it is still a major challenge for the American population and poses a major risk (Nagar, 2012). This means that many citizens in America are caught off guard by the disease of cancer and its effects. Though the government and private sector strive to acquire new technology and medicines, the response from the citizens is relatively lower than expected by the government (Nagar, 2012). While there is evidence of a continued lack of awareness among the citizens, a good number of Americans acknowledge the risk of breast cancer. This is evident through the active anti-breast cancer campaigns in held February and October. Considering breast cancer is a global health problem, countries all over the world have recorded cases and mortalities caused by breast cancer. One such country is South Africa. In South Africa, the population is fairly informed on breast cancer issues. With only five to ten cases for every 100,000 citizens, this can be said to be a great achievement considering South Africa is still a developing country in Africa. This demonstrates that breast cancer is taken quite seriously in South Africa (Walker, 2012). Study #1: Nursing Research Study in the U.S.A According to the journal by Saika and Subue on breast cancer in America, cases of breast cancer are remarkably high (2009). In their journal, Epidemiology of Breast Cancer in Japan and the US, apart from new cases of breast cancer being high, mortalities caused by the same disease are also high. Among Americans, this disease is mainly caused by lifestyle. Statistics indicate that breast cancer, especially in women hit a record high in the 1990s. Data released as of 2002 showed that many new cases were reported among women in the age bracket of 60 to 64 years. This group accounts for close to 20,000 of the total number of new cases. Most patients who die from the disease are in the age group of over 80 years. Cases of breast cancer in men were only 0.02%. The comparison of the incidence and mortality rate is that many cancer patients tend to live with it for a considerable number of years before it gets the best of them. Therefore breast cancer is more prevalent in older women than in younger women. In the US, most risk factors are as a result of lifestyle. Obesity is one main lifestyle factor associated with causing breast cancer, especially in women. Alcohol consumption too, is a contributing factor to lifestyle causes of breast cancer. Another cause of the disease is genetic mutation. This is the passing on of genes that have cancerous components to babies. Exogenous hormones also have a large contribution to the cases and mortalities of breast cancer. Some cases of diagnosed breast cancer indicate an imbalance in hormones of the body, for instance estrogen-progestin imbalance in the body. Furthermore, other cases are caused by poor nutrition and lack of physical exercise. A poor diet and a dormant body that is not regularly exercised are both linked with breast cancer, especially post-menopausal breast cancer in women. However, prevention and treatment has highly been enhanced due to improved technology and awareness programs. Although the cases of breast cancer are still high in America, the government and medical stakeholders have improved the facilities, service delivery and awareness on the same to account for the consistent decrease in new cases as well as mortality cases arising from breast cancer. All these factors have clearly been captured in the article. Study #2: Nursing Research Study in the Non U.S.A Breast cancer is one of the leading cancers among women of South Africa. According to Vorobiof, Sitas and Vorobiof in the journal Breast Cancer Incidence in South Africa, the disease has been diagnosed by pathologists from all corners of the country. Although it is more prevalent in white South African women than black and mixed race women of the same country, it generally contributes the largest share of mortality cases in the country. From statistics, new cases are put at about 3785 per annum. The age bracket that reported the highest number of patients in the country is between 45 years and 65 years. Furthermore, more urban women were reported to have the disease than rural women. This is attributed to the urban lifestyle where women wait for longer periods of time before having children, thus prolonging their life without breastfeeding, short periods of lactation as well as lack of physical body exercise. The main reason for the widespread cases of the disease is limited information for a small population of the women. Most of them do not seek mammogram tests and other types of screening on time, thereby giving the disease a chance to have adverse effects. This means that a total eradication of the disease is close to impossible. Study #3: Research Study in the U.S.A In the journal, A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, an estimated 230,480 Americans are prone to breast cancer infections; within that population, nearly 40,000 die from the disease. The most vulnerable group is the 50 years and over. This group reports new cases at 78% of the total cases while deaths are at 87% of the total deaths. Among all Americans, African-American women contribute the largest number of patients of breast cancer. At the same time, the individuals living in poverty die from breast cancer more than the middle income and the rich citizens. This is attributed to the fact that poverty is highly linked with ignorance. Therefore, these poor people are ignorant to information related to breast cancer, and this leads to their higher death rates from the disease than in other social classes. Although breast cancer cases in America are reducing over time, the country is far from achieving a breast cancer-free population due to challenges such as poverty among the population as well as ignorance and negligence. Study #4: Research Study in Non U.S.A. According to the Journal of Oncology, cases of breast cancer are rising sharply in South Africa. This is caused by several changes in the lifestyles of women in the country. South Africa being one of the countries that experience growth, the labor force, which includes women, has to move from rural areas to urban areas for work. This changes their routine and thus increases the chances of breast cancer. Breast cancer is ranked as the leading cause of death among young South African Women. Furthermore, most of these women are low-income earners and lack the ability to seek professional medical advice and check-ups. This makes them passive about the disease and therefore preventive measures are hindered. However, the mortality rate of young women due to the disease can be reduced greatly if programs are put in place to ensure that there is early detection and treatment of the disease. One major challenge to this initiative is the lack of money necessary to equip hospitals with the appropriate life-sustaining resources. Such means include: screening facilities, surgery facilities, and sensitization tools, among others. Conclusion Breast cancer, being a world concern, has been reported on a global scale, which includes the USA and South Africa. However, a comparison of the two nations, which typically depicts the differences between the first world and the third world, reflects a large gap between America and South Africa. In America, cases of breast cancer are greatly declining while in South Africa there are chances that they could be increasing. This can be attributed to the economic differences and lifestyle differences of the two countries. However, both have a common ground: cancer prevention and treatment is greatly hindered by ignorance and negligence among the population. References Nagar, R. (2012). The future of breast cancer screening in the U.S. Yale Journal of Medicine and Law, 2(8). Retief, F., & Ciliers, L. (2011). Breast cancer in antiquity. South African Medical Journal, 101(8). Rostas, J., & Dyess, D. (2012). Current operative management of breast cancer: An age of smaller resections and bigger cures. International Journal of Breast Cancer. Saika, K., & Sobue, T. (2009). Epidemiology of breast cancer in Japan and the U.S. Japan Medical Association – Journal. Santis, C., Siegel, R., Bandi, P., & Jemal, A. (2011). Breast cancer statistics, 2011. A Cancer Journal for Clinicians. Schlebush, C., Dreyer, D., & Sluiter, M. (2010). Cancer prevalence in 129 breast-ovarian cancer families tested for BRCA1 and BRCA2Mutations. South African Medical Journal. Shulman, L., Willet, W., Sievers, A., & Knaul, F. (2010). Breast cancer in developing countries: Opportunities for improved survival. Journal of Oncology. Vorobiof, D., Sistas, F., & Vorobiof, G. (2001). Breast cancer incidence in South Africa. American Society of Clinical Oncology. Read More