Patient's question:
Slight indentation and wrinkles on the lower side of the breast, sometimes painful. No lump felt.Doctor's answer:
Not necessarily. The early symptoms of breast cancer mainly include:1. Some early breast cancer patients may not be able to feel a clear lump in the breast, but often experience local discomfort, especially postmenopausal women. They may feel mild pain or discomfort in one breast, or heaviness, aching, or discomfort in the shoulder and back on the same side, even extending to the upper arm.
2. Small, bean-sized lumps can be felt in the breast, which are hard but movable. Generally, there is no obvious pain, though some may experience intermittent dull or sharp pain.
3. Changes in breast shape: Visible swelling or elevation at the lump site, or skin that appears like orange peel, even edema, discoloration, or eczema-like changes.
4. Nipple retraction near the center, accompanied by mild breast skin indentation (medically known as "inverted nipple"). The nipple may be eroded, asymmetrical, or the breast skin may thicken, become rough, or have enlarged pores (medically known as "orange peel syndrome").
5. Nipple discharge: Bloody or serosanguineous discharge should be given special attention for further examination.
6. Regional lymph node enlargement, most commonly in the axillary lymph nodes on the same side. Enlargement of the supraclavicular lymph nodes already indicates advanced stages. Early breast cancer, if detected, has a high chance of being cured with timely treatment, causing minimal harm to the patient. Early treatment of breast cancer significantly affects the patient's prognosis and directly relates to reducing mortality rates.
In the past, Western medicine primarily relied on surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, endocrine therapy, and immunotherapy for early breast cancer treatment. However, with the continuous research and development of integrated Chinese and Western medicine in tumor prevention and treatment, such as the development and clinical application of a new anti-tumor drug (ginsenoside Rh2) classified as a Category I anti-tumor agent, traditional Chinese medicine and herbal medicine have also played a greater role in the treatment of breast cancer.