Breast cancer is always caused by a genetic abnormality (a “mistake” in the genetic material). However, only 5-10% of cancers are due to an abnormality inherited from your mother or father. About 90% of breast cancers are due to genetic abnormalities that happen as a result of the aging process and the “wear and tear” of life in general.

While there are steps every person can take to help the body stay as healthy as possible (such as eating a balanced diet, not smoking, limiting alcohol, and exercising regularly), breast cancer is never anyone's fault. Feeling guilty, or telling yourself that breast cancer happened because of something you or anyone else did, is not productive.

Over time, cancer cells can invade nearby healthy breast tissue and make their way into the underarm lymph nodes, small organs that filter out foreign substances in the body. If cancer cells get into the lymph nodes, they then have a pathway into other parts of the body. The breast cancer’s stage refers to how far the cancer cells have spread beyond the original tumor

Read more »

breast cancer

What Is Breast Cancer?

Breast cancer is an uncontrolled growth of breast cells. To better understand breast cancer, it helps to understand how any cancer can develop.Cancer occurs as a result of mutations, or abnormal changes, in the genes responsible for regulating the growth of cells and keeping them healthy.
The genes are in each cell’s nucleus, which acts as the “control room” of each cell. Normally, the cells in our bodies replace themselves through an orderly process of cell growth:

healthy new cells take over as old ones die out. But over time, mutations can “turn on” certain genes and “turn off” others in a cell. That changed cell gains the ability to keep dividing without control or order, producing more cells just like it and forming a tumor.
Usually breast cancer either begins in the cells of the lobules, which are the milk-producing glands, or the ducts, the passages that drain milk from the lobules to the nipple.
Less commonly, breast cancer can begin in the stromal tissues, which include the fatty and fibrous connective tissues of the breast.

Read more »

Accreditation of cancer

Accreditation and Affiliation
Our cancer program is accredited by the American College of Surgeons and the American College of Radiology, a distinction that means we meet high standards for access to care, technology, multidisciplinary care, information and education. Cape Cod Healthcare is affiliated with distinguished cancer treatment centers including Dana-Farber/Partners CancerCare, and the adult oncology collaboration among Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital. In addition, we are affiliated with Women & Infants Hospital, Boston Medical Center and the National Cancer Institute (NCI). These affiliations enable us to offer the most current cancer protocols available and to participate in clinical trials for new treatments.

A regional leader in cancer care
Cape Cod Healthcare Cancer Services provides a complete range of advanced cancer treatment options, highly trained specialists, and top-notch facilities. Our multidisciplinary approach brings together medical oncology, radiation oncology, surgery, radiology, pathology and nursing to analyze and consult on cancer cases. Our investment in imaging technology gives us the ability to provide accurate and early diagnosis and staging.

Read more »