Why is Breast Cancer so Lethal?

Why is Breast Cancer so Lethal?

Breast Cancer is caused when cells in the breast begin to grow uncontrollably. These cells generally form a tumour that can often be seen on an x-ray or felt as a lump. The tumour is malignant if the cells can invade surrounding tissues or spread or metastasize to distant areas of the body.

It’s important to understand that most breast lumps are benign and not cancerous (malignant). Non-cancerous Breast Tumours are atypical growths, but they do not spread outside of the breast, and they are not life-threatening. But some benign breast lumps can increase a woman’s risk of getting Breast Cancer. Any breast lump or change in the breast area needs to be checked by a health care professional to determine if it is benign or malignant (cancer) and if it might affect your future cancer risk.

Generally, it isn’t the Breast Cancer itself that troubles; it is Metastasis that harms you.

Breast cancer can start as one bad replicated cell in the body that has a gene that does not allow apoptosis or cell death. Which means that cells that are unhealthy, or do not have healthy DNA, can continuously replicate. This results in tumour formation, which can be seen as a lump in the breast.

When the tumour gets big, some cells start spreading out or metastasize. They end up in the Lymph Nodes, heart, brain, liver, etc., worsening the health condition.

Cancerous malignant cells can metastasize healthy cells, or block the normal functioning of healthy cells causing heart attacks, clots, cell death, strokes, etc.