A breast cancer patient is rarely fighting alone
Why breast cancer prevention is critical and why it’s so important to find your own individual path in cancer treatment.
One in two million
In 2020, there were 2.3 million women diagnosed with breast cancer and 685,000 deaths globally. By the end of 2020, there were 7.8 million women alive who had been diagnosed with breast cancer in the previous five years1, making it the world’s most prevalent cancer.
Early detection
As is the case with many types of cancer, there is little that can be done to avoid the occurrence of breast cancer. But whether due to fear of the result, reservations about what the unfamiliar examination might feel like, or simply due to procrastination, many women don’t make use of the early detection screenings available. This is problematic because time is the most important factor when it comes to early detection.
On average, 1 in 8 women develop breast cancer over the course of their lives. The rule of thumb is that the sooner the disease is detected, the lower the number and intensity of procedures, the better the chances of recovery and the sooner the patient will be able to return to a normal life.
How to increase your chances
It’s precisely because it’s not possible to directly influence the development of cancer that early detection remains the most important factor in increasing chances of a favorable course if the disease does occur. In the best case, patients will simply invest the short time needed for a quick examination to make sure that their life can continue as usual.
Routine self-examination
Time is the most important factor
If breast cancer is diagnosed early on, the five-year survival rate is well above 90 percent in industrial countries.
COVID-19 should not stop anyone from getting checked
This has not changed during the COVID-19 pandemic: The procedures continue to be available and can be carried out, also when strict infection prevention measures are in place. The virus should not stop anyone from getting checked, as breast cancer is not going to wait for life to return to normal.
AI provides smart support
As part of every preventive medical check-up, substantial data is generated that has to be analysed promptly. Artificial intelligence offers smart support for the experts.
Artificial Intelligence enhances breast cancer screening
In breast cancer screening programs, such as the one running in the Netherlands, a high volume of mammography data is acquired. Radiologists have to evaluate hundreds of images every day with precision and often under time pressure. Artificial intelligence (AI) offers radiologists smart support: “It’s like having an additional colleague at the press of a button,” says radiologist Ritse Mann of Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
Individual treatment
Optimal outcomes for breast cancer depend on a timely diagnosis followed by an organized, multidisciplinary approach to individual treatment. Following the first pioneers on the field of breast cancer, Siemens Healthineers has remained committed to fighting this disease. Beginning with its first mammography system in 1972, further key developments such as tomosynthesis but also breast MRI and dedicated ultrasound solutions have helped us to offer ways to find cancer earlier and move toward personalized care.
With the goal of supporting clinical decision-making throughout the entire care pathway, our portfolio includes imaging technology to attain the highest level of accuracy for screening, but also for diagnostics, disease characterization, and treatment. Emerging digital technologies complement and enhance these offerings, empowering decisions and making care more precise and efficient.
Radiation therapy will continue to evolve to become even more precise.
Breast Center Südbaden
Examination and treatments are becoming more gentle as technology advances. Examples of this include patient-oriented development of the contact surfaces, imaging diagnostics becoming ever more refined, as well as targeted, minimally invasive procedures.
Making mammography more comfortable for the patient – and more precise
Mammography can be a source of anxiety for the patient. In Denmark, one university hospital is putting great emphasis on making breast examinations more comfortable, while at the same time enabling more personalized care with improved diagnostic accuracy.
Mammography is the most efficient method for this purpose, and even more effective than palpation and ultrasound. The German Cancer Society (Brustkrebs Deutschland e.V.) assumes that the average size of a lump detected by mammography is 0.5 cm, while the average size of a lump that women can detect through regular self-examination is 2 cm.
A closer look at modern mammography
Watch this video to learn more about the ways modern mammography is used today to improve diagnostic results.
From diagnosis to breast cancer treatment
Women's health
Oncology-focused solutions. Patient-focused care.
Varian and Siemens Healthineers are dedicated to connecting all care aspects to achieve a world without fear of cancer. Intelligent Cancer Care™ stands for integrated, connected care pathways designed to drive efficiencies and deliver world-class treatment along the cancer continuum to increase impact where it matters most: patients.
To help patients prepare for the fight, Varian provides a brief outline of what they can expect during treatment with radiotherapy and radiosurgery.
The better the image quality, the more accurate the detection.
Breast Center Südbaden
Therapy will continue to evolve
The Breast Center Südbaden in Freiburg, southwest Germany, doesn’t just offer breast cancer patients state-of-the-art diagnostics and therapy with high-tech equipment from Siemens Healthineers. It also accompanies women with breast cancer from discovery to recovery through special services.
Christian Weissenberger, MD, from Breast Center Südbaden takes a look at the future. In his opinion, radiation therapy will be an essential part of breast care therapy tomorrow, and it will continue to evolve to become even more precise.
How to stay strong
Get different opinions, get the best doctors and make sure it is the best equipment.
TV presenter and breast cancer patient
How to gain confidence
How long will I have to undergo radiation treatment? Is radiation treatment painful or uncomfortable? Will I be alone in the treatment room? As a cancer patient, you have a lot of questions and uncertainty can arise if answers keep you waiting. Only if we build up knowledge, can we be confident in dealing with the disease. Our colleagues at Varian provide you with information and answers to your most pressing questions.
A very personal matter
Staying mentally healthy throughout the period of treatment and recovery is essential. And what you know can make all the difference. One of the best ways people can learn about treatment is from the stories of those who have experienced it firsthand. We invite you to watch our patient stories.
Jennifer Yarnell is living her life with passion and joy
Jen is a mom, wife, aunt, sister and friend who is living with breast cancer. With the help of her local support community, Jen is living her life with passion and joy and teaching her son how to live with purpose and grace.
1 WHO EMRO | Breast Cancer Awareness Month 2021 | Campaigns | Les maladies non transmissibles
2 American Cancer society. Breast Cancer Facts& Figures 2019-2020. Atlanta: American Cancer Society, Inc. 2019; S.20.
The statements by Siemens Healthineers customers described herein are based on results that were achieved in the customer’s unique setting. Since there is no “typical” hospital and many variables exist (e.g., hospital size, case mix, level of IT adoption) there can be no guarantee that other customers will achieve the same results.
Clinical speakers receive financial support from Siemens Healthineers for collaborations.