BREAST CANCER

Again, I've forgotten about my blog. Well, actually I didn't forget. Only that I just couldn't find the time to sit down and blog about what I saw in the wards.

I just got to know that quite a number of people have been reading my blog. I didn't really expect that. And thank you for your support. From now on I will try to blog a little more often and blog on the more interesting cases I saw in the hospitals.

I'm now in the final year of my M.B.B.S course and hopefuly in another 1 and 1/2 year I will graduate and start working then. I am now posted in one of the specialist hospital in Muar, Johor. It's quite a busy hospital but work hasn't been at it's hectic peak yet. I've gained few good experiances here by seeing more cases now that I'm in surgery ward.

Almost everyday there are new cases of breast cancer patients need to be admitted in the hospital to undergo treatments. Sadly, most of these women seek medical help too late. Few of these women have a huge cancerous lump in their breast and a number of them have developed ulcers on the breast skin too.

I got to talk to the patients and asked them what was the reason that they came too late to the hospital. Some told me that they wanted to try for alternative medicine and some had seek help from a medicine man. Sadly but true, some of them have went to see a doctor in some private clinics and these unfortunate ladies were just treated with antibiotics and panadol! For a simple yet unforgiveable reason that these doctors didn't examine their breasts and didn't even have a suspicion of something dangerous even though breast cancer is at rise in Malaysia. I hope I will never forget this and will never ever do the same to my patients once I start practicing.

There are a few simple steps of how women can examine their own breasts at home and if at all they have felt any abnormality in their breasts they should immediately come to the doctors to be checked. Here is a good link to have a look at on how to do Breast Self Examination. Click on it.

Oh and yes, breast cancer although occur mostly in women, men are still in danger of it too. There are a number of causes as to why it develops. The strongest causative factor is the inherited gene called BRCA1. In those families where there have been a member who have been diagnosed with breast cancer before, you should be more cautious and should be more alert of any changes in your breast since you are at a high risk of developing it.

For men out there, do encourage your loved ones (not forgetting your dearest mother) to do breast self examination and push them if at all they hesitate to get their breasts checked by doctors. Though previously this disease attack the aged women, nowadays there have been cases reported among women who are as young as 30 years old.