• General FAQs
• Medical Topics
• News Articles
• Web Resources

The best way to fight breast cancer is to have a plan that helps you detect the disease in its early stages. According to the National Cancer Institute:

• Nearly 200,000 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year.
• 1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer during their lifetime.
• Over 30% of women are diagnosed after breast cancer has spread beyond the localized stage.
• When breast cancer is detected early (localized stage), the 5-year survival rate is 98%.

An Early Detection Plan is an interactive tool to help remind you to schedule:

• Self Breast – Exams
• Clinical Breast Exams
• Mammograms

http://www.nationalbreastcancer.org/edp/

Many changes occur in your breasts during your lifetime. It's important to understand which changes are normal and which are not. The first step is to learn about the structure of your breasts and how they function. This section of Understanding Breast Cancer provides basic information about breast health, breast cancer and other breast conditions.

Many women do not learn much about breast health unless they breastfeed or they have a problem that needs medical attention. Becoming familiar with breast anatomy and physiology can help you understand the normal changes that occur during your lifetime. This knowledge is a good place to start learning about health problems and conditions that affect the breasts.

http://ww5.komen.org/BreastCancer/TheBreast.html

The Susan B. Komen Cancer Foundation provides many excellent documents for you to review and/or download as part of your education about your breasts and breast cancer. “The Questions to Ask the Doctor About Breast Cancer” series includes 14 topic cards. Each card contains pertinent questions to discuss with your doctor regarding a specific breast cancer topic. These topic cards are a valuable tool for women who have been recently diagnosed with breast cancer, who may be too overwhelmed to even know where to begin to start gathering information. You can download and print the cards and take them with you to your next doctor's appointment. Plenty of space is provided to jot down the answers to the questions.  These topic cards are also available in Spanish.

http://ww5.komen.org/BreastCancer/QuestionstoAsktheDoctorPDFDownloads.html

Men

Although breast cancer is more common in women, it can also occur in men but is rare. In 2009, an estimated 1,910 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer, and 440 will die from it. Signs and symptoms of breast cancer in men include: nipple discharge (usually bloody), an inverted nipple, a breast lump, and sometimes, local pain, itching and pulling sensation. The survival rate of men is about the same as for women with the same stage of cancer at the time of diagnosis. However, men are usually diagnosed at a later stage because they are less likely to report symptoms. Treatment for men is the same as treatment for women and usually includes a combination of surgery, radiation, chemotherapy and/or hormone therapy.

For more information on breast cancer, visit the following sites:
http://ww5.komen.org
http://www.nationalbreastcancer.org
http://www.nbcam.org