Causes for breast cancer

Definition

Breast cancer is the malignant growth of tissue in the breast, which is one of the most common malignant diseases in women. In rare cases it also occurs in male patients. Breast cancer may be new due to mutations or may be predisposed due to an inherited component.

The disease can develop from different types of tissue in the breast and is divided into different stages. The most common origin is the degeneration of mammary gland tissue and the degeneration of lactiferous duct tissue. In advanced stages, the cancer can spread to other parts of the body, which worsens the prognosis of the patient and can also be fatal.

What are the causes and risk factors?

In general, the majority of cancers in breast tissue can be divided into two categories: Degeneration starting from the mammary gland tissue Degeneration starting from the mammary duct tissue Causes and risk factors cannot be exactly distinguished from each other in the development of breast cancer, since not each person exposed to the risk factor falls ill with breast cancer, but these cannot be excluded nevertheless as causes for such an illness, since they increase the risk for it: BRCA1/BRCA2- or other inherited mutations Spontaneous mutations in breast tissue Alcohol consumption Smoking Taking artificial hormones Mastopathy Grade II and Grade III

  • Degeneration starting from the mammary gland tissue
  • Degeneration starting from the lactiferous tissue
  • BRCA1/BRCA2 or other inherited mutations
  • Spontaneous mutations in breast tissue
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Smoking
  • Taking artificial hormones
  • Mastopathy grade II and grade III

What is the breast cancer gene?

A gene mutation that is very often associated with the development of breast cancer is the mutation on the Breast Cancer gene 1 or 2 (BRCA1/BRCA2). When these genes function normally, uncontrolled cell growth in the body is inhibited, which normally protects against breast cancer. In patients with a mutation of these genes, the protective component of the gene is removed, so that the body cannot compensate for the abnormalities as well.

Mutations of the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene are found in up to 10% of breast cancers. Since these are inherited dominantly, the risk of passing the mutation on to offspring is high. Patients who are carriers of such a mutation have a much higher risk of developing breast cancer. In addition, in many cases the disease occurs at a much younger age than in patients with no family history of breast cancer. At the same time, both the BRCA1 and the BRCA2 mutation are associated with the occurrence of ovarian cancer.