40 | June• 2018
6 NEW TREATMENTS THAT CAN SAVE YOUR LIFE
Breast Cancer
In 2018, an estimated 18,235
new cases of breast cancer will
be diagnosed in Australia, and
around 3000 in New Zealand.
THE GOOD NEWS
Many breast cancers are so
slow-growing that may not need
treatment. For those needing
treatment, survival times are
greatly improved.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Genetic testing now allows doctors
to pinpoint which treatment will
work best for which cancer, making
long-term survival possible.The incidence of breast cancer in
Australia and New Zealand is, at irst
glance, alarmingly high. About one
ineightwomenwillgetthedisease.
But a breast cancer diagnosis no
longer needs to be a death sentence.
Amazingly, a good portion of breast
cancers don’t need treatment.
Most small tumours (under two
centimetres), found only by mammo-
gram, will never grow large enough to
lead to symptoms or death, according
to a 2016 study inThe New England
Journal of Medicine. Even when a
breast cancer is an aggressive
type,ithasbecomeaverytreat-
able, survivable disease.
“We’re finding breast can-
cers earlier and earlier, when
they’re much smaller and
haven’t spread elsewhere inhe most common screening tool
inAustraliaisthefaecaloccultblood
test (FOBT), which detects the pres-
enceofbloodinthestool.Advances
overthelastfewyearshaveproduced
amoreaccurateversionofthefaecal
test: the faecal immunochemical test
(FIT).Apositiveresultmayrequirea
follow-up colonoscopy, which can
bothlocateandremovegrowthsin
the colon or rectum.
“Inaperfectworld,we’dallhave
colonoscopiestoscreenforbowel
cancer,” says Dr Graham Newstead,
director of Bowel Cancer Australia.
“But it’s expensive, invasive and
resource-dependent.” The faecal
occultbloodtest,hesays,isanaccu-
ratescreeningtool–andthenextbest
thing–forthegeneralpopulation.
Forty per cent of males and 30 per
centoffemaleswilldevelopapolyp
intheirbowel–mostofwhichwillnot
developintocancer.“Butinthecases
that become cancerous, by the time
youhavesigniicantsymptoms,the
polypwillhavegrownthroughthe
bowel,andpossiblyintothelymph
nodesorliver.”hebestpreventionis
earlydetection,withscreeningevery
twoyearsbetweenages50–74.
“Screeningcansaveliveswhenfol-
lowedupbytimelydiagnostic
colonoscopy, by detecting
bowel cancer at its early
stages when 90 per cent of
cases can be successfully
treated,” says Newstead.