Breast cancer symptoms vary, and may not be the same from person to person.
You may experience some, or even none or all of the common symptoms.
This is why it's important to get checked out by a doctor promptly if you suspect you may be experiencing breast cancer symptoms, or have any questions about your breast cancer symptoms.
Breast cancer symptoms vary widely "" from lumps to swelling to skin changes "" and many breast cancers have no obvious symptoms at all.
Symptoms that are similar to those of breast cancer may be the result of non-cancerous conditions like infection or a cyst.
Breast self-exam should be part of your monthly health care routine, and you should visit your doctor if you experience breast changes.
Real breast cancer symptoms are often confused with normal breast occurrences.
For instance, during certain points in a woman's menstrual cycle, the breasts may become swollen and sore.
This is a natural occurrence caused by fluctuating hormones and not necessarily a symptom of breast cancer.
However, if you have never experienced this before, schedule an appointment with your doctor to be safe.
A lump on the breast is the best-known symptom of breast cancer.
Many of these lumps really are early signs of cancer, and need to be checked as quickly as possible.
The lump is more likely to be dangerous if it somewhat firm, but not painful.
Cysts and other non-cancerous ailments lead to painful lumps.
While these lumps may appear anywhere on the breast, they are most frequent beneath the nipple and near the armpit at the breast's outer fringes.
It's important to note that not all lumps are an indication of cancer.
Many women have naturally fibrous (or "lumpy") breasts.
If this is the case, you should discuss with your doctor the best method of testing for you.
Recent scientific studies have shown that women are often not able to detect most lumps by doing a breast self exam, as many hide too far below the surface, or are very small.
The term, metastatic, describes a cancer that has spread to distant organs from the original tumor site.
Metastatic breast cancer is the most advanced stage (stage IV) of breast cancer information.
Cancer cells have spread past the breast and axillary (underarm) lymph nodes to other areas of the body where they continue to grow and multiply.
Breast cancer has the potential to spread to almost any region of the body.
The most common region breast cancer spreads to is the bone, followed by the lung and liver.
Treatment of metastatic breast cancer generally focuses on relieving symptoms.