Breast self examination: to do or not to do?

This is a retrospective descriptive study done to look at common presentation and method of detection of breast cancer. A total of 366 case records of patients attending the Breast and Endocrine Clinic at Hospital Kuala Lumpur were reviewed. The peak age of breast cancer presentation was 40 to 49 years (39.6%). Most (81.4%) patients presented with a lump in the breast and the lump was mainly self-detected (97.3%). The mean tumour diameter on presentation was 4.7± 3 cm. Medical staff detected the disease in 1.6% cases and 1.1% of cases were detected by mammogram. Most women detected the lump themselves, suggesting that Breast Self Examination (BSE) can be used for detection of the disease in places where there is cost and availability constrains for mammogram. Early detection with BSE can possibly offer better treatment options and quality of life despite the evidence that it does not reduce the mortality due to breast cancer

Breast Self Examination: To Do or Not To Do?

ABSTRAK Ini adalah satu kajian retrospektif untuk melihat presentasi kanser payudara dan cara ianya dikesan dikalangan pesakit di Hospital Kuala Lumpur. Sebanyak 366 rekod pesakit dari Klinik Endokrin dan Payudara dianalisa. Hasil kajian menunjukan kebanyakan pesakit adalah dalam lingkungan umur 40-49 tahun (39.6%). Sebanyak 81.4% pesakit menunjukkan ketulan pada payudara dan mengesan ketulan ini sendiri (97.3%). Diameter min tumor semasa presentasi adalah 4.7± 3 cm. Sebanyak 1.6% penyakit di kesan oleh kakitangan perubatan dan 1.1% lagi dikesan melalui mamogram. Kesimpulannya, kebanyakan pesakit mengesan ketulan pada payudara mereka sendiri. Ini mencadangkan bahawa kaedah pemeriksaan sendiri payudara boleh digunakan sebagai saringan untuk mengesan tanda-tanda awal kanser payudara, sekiranya kemudahan mamogram tidak ada. Pengesanan awal melalui pemeriksaan sendiri dapat menawarkan pilihan rawatan dan kualiti hidup yang lebih baik sungguhpun terdapat bukti yang menyatakan bahawa kaedah ini tidak dapat mengurangkan mortaliti kanser payudara. Kata kunci: Kanser payudara, peperiksaan sendiri payudara ABSTRACT This is a retrospective descriptive study done to look at common presentation and method of detection of breast cancer. A total of 366 case records of patients attending the Breast and Endocrine Clinic at Hospital Kuala Lumpur were reviewed. The peak age of breast cancer presentation was 40 to 49 years (39.6%). Most (81.4%) patients presented with a lump in the breast and the lump was mainly self-detected (97.3%). The mean tumour diameter on presentation was 4.7± 3 cm. Medical staff detected the disease in 1.6% cases and 1.1% of cases were detected by mammogram. Most women detected the lump themselves, suggesting that Breast Self Examination (BSE) can be used for detection of the disease in places where there is cost and availability constrains for mammogram. Early detection with BSE can possibly offer better treatment options and quality of life despite the evidence that it does not reduce the mortality due to breast cancer

Natural product-based nanoformulations for cancer therapy: Opportunities and challenges.

Application of natural product-based nanoformulations for the treatment of different human diseases, such as cancer, is an emerging field. The conventional cancer therapeutic modalities, including surgery, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, radiotherapy has limited achievements. A larger number of drawbacks are associated with these therapies, including damage to proliferating healthy tissues, structural deformities, systemic toxicity, long-term side effects, resistance to the drug by tumor cells, and psychological problems. The advent of nanotechnology in cancer therapeutics is recent; however, it has progressed and transformed the field of cancer treatment at a rapid rate. Nanotherapeutics have promisingly overcome the limitations of conventional drug delivery system, i.e., low aqueous solubility, low bioavailability, multidrug resistance, and non-specificity. Specifically, natural product-based nanoformulations are being intentionally studied in different model systems. Where it is found that these nanoformulations has more proximity and reduced side effects. The nanoparticles can specifically target tumor cells, enhancing the specificity and efficacy of cancer therapeutic modalities which in turn improves patient response and survival. The integration of phytotherapy and nanotechnology in the clinical setting may improve pharmacological response and better clinical outcome of patients