A 32-year-old female presents for an evaluation of a lump in her right breast that she found on breast self-examination. The lump is found to be 2cm in size, firm, and mobile. No Adenopothy noted.
What are two questions you would ask this patient?
- When did you first notice this lump and is it painful to the touch?
- Has there been any trauma to the area or any associated symptoms.
What are two risk factors would you want to assess for?
- I would ask about history of birth control use or any other estrogen intake. According to Daly (2022) The primary risk factor for developing breast cancer is excess exposure to estrogens.
- Is there a family history of breast lumps or any type of cancer in the family? If so, were they diagnosed prior to the age of 50 yrs of age? Family history would be one of the key risk factors for breast cancer, particularly if family members were young (>50) at the age of diagnosis (2022).
What are the levels of prevention for this patient?
- A primary level of prevention would be to educate the patient on modifiable risk factors. These modifiable risk factors, according to the Pan American Health Association, consist of obesity, physical inactivity and reduced alcohol consumption can reduce breast cancer incidence and improve overall health (2014).
- A secondary level of prevention would be performing additional screening to identify the possible possibility of breast cancer in its earliest stages. With the patient being 32 y/o, I would utilize sonography to further assess and identify the mass. With being under the age of 35 y/o the breast tissue tends to be denser. This dense tissue impedes the accuracy of mammography and makes it more challenging to detect microcalcifications (2022).
