Breast Cancer Tests and Exams

Breast Cancer:

What are the Breast Cancer Medical Tests and Exams?

The purpose of a breast cancer clinical trial is to find new and improved methods of treating the disease. Clinical trials make it possible to apply the latest scientific and technological advances to patient care.During a breast cancer clinical trial, researchers, usually doctors, use the best available treatment as a standard to evaluate new treatments.

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These treatments may be a new drug, surgery, or an alternative medicine.First, researchers study new treatment options in the laboratory in test tubes and animals. If those results are promising, new treatments are further evaluated in a small group of people, and, finally, in a larger clinical trial.When a new medical treatment is studied for the first time in humans, no one knows exactly how it will work.

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Gradually, there are two, four, then eight abnormal cells living in your breast. You can’t feel a lump from just a few cells, a mammogram or ultrasound won’t reveal those cells, and they might not turn into breast cancer. But research shows that having abnormal cells in your nipple fluid is related to an increased risk for breast cancer.The HALO test may be able to help determine your risk for breast cancer up to seven years before a breast self-exam or a mammogram would reveal a lump. The HALO is a screening test, not a diagnostic test. It will not replace having a mammogram, breast self-exam or clinical breast exam.

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1. Magnetic resonance imaging of the breast. MRI is a test that uses a magnetic field and pulses of radio wave energy to provide pictures of the inside of the breast. It may be more sensitive than a mammogram for finding breast cancer in women who have a strong family history of breast cancer. But MRI also finds small irregularities that can lead to further testing but turn out to not be breast cancer. MRI is also more expensive and not as readily available as mammography.

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2. Mammogram. A mammogram is an X-ray of the breast. It can often find tumors that are too small for you or your doctor to feel. Your doctor may suggest that you have a screening mammogram, especially if you have any risk factors for breast cancer.

3. Clinical breast exam . During a clinical breast exam, your doctor will carefully feel your breasts and under your arms to check for lumps or other unusual changes.

It is a good way for you to learn what your breasts normally look and feel like. When you know what’s normal for you, you’re better able to notice changes and know when to get help early instead of waiting for your next checkup. A breast self-exam is a tool that you can use on a regular basis, but it is not a substitute for a mammogram or a clinical breast exam. This is because large studies have shown that, on average, BSE alone does not lead to earlier diagnosis.

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