• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.17
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• pp.7485-7489
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• 2015

Background: Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer in women throughout the world. However, in comparison with Western women, it presents relatively early in women of Asian ethnicity. Early menarche, late menopause, use of OCP's, family history of benign or malignant breast disease, exposure to radiation and BMI in the under-weight range are well known risk factors for the development of breast cancer in premenopausal women. Early detection with the use of breast self-examination (BSE) and breast cancer screening programs can lead to a reduction in the mortality rates due to breast cancer. The aim of our study was to assess the risk factors for breast cancer among young women and to emphasize the importance of early screening among them. Materials and Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study among women aged 18 to 25 using a self-administered questionnaire. Data was collected over a period of 6 months from June to December, 2014. A total of 300 young women selected randomly from Dow Medical College and various departments of Karachi University successfully completed the survey. Results: Respondents were 18-25 years of age (mean age=21.5). Out of the 300 young females, 90 (30%) had at least one risk factor, 90 (30%) had two, 40 (13%) had three, 8 (2.7%) had four, 2 (0.7%) had five while one female was found to have six positive risk factors for breast cancer. Some 66 women (22%) experienced symptoms of breast cancer such as non-cyclical pain and lumps. While 222 women (74%) had never performed breast self-examination, 22 (7.3%) had had a breast examination done by a health professional while 32 (10.7%) had participated in breast screening programs. A total of 223 (74.3%) women considered breast cancer screening important for young women. Conclusions: The percentage of young women with risk factors for breast cancer was found to be alarmingly high. Therefore, screening for breast cancer should start at an early age especially in high risk groups. Awareness about breast self-examination should be emphasized. Moreover, screening programs should be started to ensure early detection and reduction of mortality rates caused by breast cancer also in young Pakistani females.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.11
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• pp.6783-6790
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• 2013

Background: Breast cancer is the commonest type of cancer among women, and in Malaysia 50-60% of the new cases are being detected at late stages. Do age, education level, income, ethnicity, relationship with breast cancer patients and knowledge of breast cancer risk factors influence breast screening practices? This study revealed interesting but significant differences. Objectives: To assess the knowledge of breast cancer risk factors and early detection measures among women in a high risk group. Materials and Methods: A cross sectional survey of one hundred and thirty one women relatives of breast cancer patients was carried out. Participants were selected through purposive sampling, during hospital visits. A self-administered questionnaire was used for data collection. Results: The majority of the respondents (71%) had poor knowledge of the risk factors for breast cancer. Income, relationship with a patient and practise of breast cancer screening predicted performance of mammography, $R^2$=0.467, F=12.568, p<0.0001. Conclusions: The finding shows inadequate knowledge of breast cancer risk factors and poor cancer screening practise among women with family history of breast cancer. Poor knowledge and practise of breast screening are likely to lead to late stage presentation of breast cancer disease. Some important predictors of breast cancer screening behaviour among women with positive family history of breast cancer were identified. An understanding of the strengths and significance of the association between these factors and breast screening behaviour is vital for developing more targeted breast health promotion.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.2547-2553
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• 2015

Purpose: The present study concerns the effectiveness of an educational intervention for improving knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) of breast cancer early detection among target group women (TGW) in the district of Gampaha, Sri Lanka. Materials and Methods: The study was a community-based intervention. Two medical officer of health areas in Gampaha district were selected using random sampling as intervention (IA) and control (CA). Public health midwives (PHMs) in the IA were exposed to the educational intervention first, conducted the same among the TGW through PHMs. KAP was assessed using an interviewer- administrated questionnaire among 260 TGW from each area selected using cluster sampling before and six months after the intervention. Results: The overall median scores for KAP among TGW in IG increased significantly from pre intervention level of 54% (IQR: 46-59%), 50% (IQR: 41-59%), and 0% (IQR: 0-20%) to post intervention level of 77% (IQR: 72-82%), 68% (IQR: 59- 76 %) and 40% (IQR: 20-60%) respectively. In CG, overall median scores for KAP remained almost the same at pre intervention 54% (IQR:44-59%), 50% (IQR:36-59%) and 0% (IQR: 0-20%) and post intervention 54% (IQR:46-59%), 50% (IQR:36-64%) and 0% (IQR: 0-20%) respectively. Conclusions: The educational intervention was found to be effective.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.357-364
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• 1997

The early detection of breast cancer is clearly a key ingredient for reducing breast cancer mortality. Microcalcification is the only visible feature of the DCIS's(ductal carcinoma in situ) which consist 15 ~ 20% of screening-detected breast cancer. Therefore, the analysis of the shapes and distributions of microcalcifications is very significant for the early detection. The automatic detection procedures have b(:on the concern of digital image processing for many years. We proposed here one efficient method which is essentially statistical pattern classification accelerated by one representative feature, correlation coefficient. We compared the results by this additional feature with results by a simple gray level thresholding. The average detection rate was increased from 48% by gray level feature only to 83% by the proposed method The performances were evaluated with TP rates and FP counts, and also with Bayes errors.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.16
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• pp.6531-6534
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• 2014

Background: In Iran, breast cancer is the most prevalent cancer in women and a major public health problem. Methods: A cross sectional study was carried out to determine knowledge on breast cancer and breast self-examination (BSE) practices of 384 females living in the city of Hamadan, Iran. A purposive sampling method was adopted and data were collected via face-to-face interviews based on a validated questionnaire developed for this study. Results: Among respondents 268 (69.8%) were married and 144 (37.5%) of the respondents reported having a family history of breast cancer. One hundred respondents (26.0%) claimed they practiced BSE. Level of breast cancer knowledge was significantly associated with BSE practice (p=0.000). There was no association with demographic details (p<0.05). Conclusion: The findings showed that Iranian women's knowledge regarding breast cancer and the practice of BSE is inadequate. Targeted education should be implemented to improve early detection of breast cancer.

• Journal of Industrial Technology
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• v.26 no.B
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• pp.221-226
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• 2006

Electrical impedance tomography (EIT) is a technique for determining the electrical conductivity and permittivity distribution within the interior of a body from measurements made on its surface. One recent application area of the EIT is the detection of breast cancer by imaging the conductivity and permittivity distribution inside the breast. The present "gold standard" for breast cancer detection is X-ray mammography, and it is desirable that EIT and X-ray mammography use the same geometry. This paper presents a forward model of a simplified mammography geometry for EIT imaging. The mammography geometry is modeled as a rectangular box with electrode arrays on the top and bottom planes. A forward model for the electrical impedance imaging problem is derived for a homogeneous conductivity distribution and Validated by experiment using a phantom tank.

• Journal of electromagnetic engineering and science
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.199-205
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• 2010

This paper presents a tumor detection system for breast cancer that utilizes two-dimensional (2D) image reconstruction with microwave tomographic imaging. The breast cancer detection system under development consists of 16 transmit/receive antennas, and the microwave tomography system operates at 900 MHz. To solve a 2D inverse scattering problem, the method of moments (MoM) is employed for forward problem solving, and the simplex method employed as an optimization algorithm. The results of the reconstructed image show that the method accurately shows the position of a breast tumor.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.2039-2044
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• 2014

This study was conducted in order to obtain a screening and early detection reference for children whose mothers had been diagnosed with cancer. Data for 276 mother-child pairs with malignant tumors were analyzed. The distribution of cancers in affected families was generally similar to that of the general Chinese population, and correspondingly breast cancer was the most common malignancy amongst daughters whose mother had cancer (32.7%). The most prevalent cancer amongst sons with affected mothers was gastric cancer, rather than lung cancer. Daughters were more likely to have the same kind of malignant tumor as their mother (P<0.05), and were more likely to develop breast cancer than any other malignant disease if their mother had a breast tumor (P<0.0001). Likewise, if the mother was diagnosed with breast or gynecological cancer, the daughter was more likely to be diagnosed with breast or gynecological cancer than any other cancer (P<0.01). Daughters and sons developed malignant diseases 11 and 6.5 years earlier than their mothers, respectively (P<0.0001).Women with a mother who suffered cancer should be screened for malignancy from 40 years of age especially for breast, lung, and gynecological cancers. For men with affected mothers, screening should start when they are 45 years old focusing particularly on lung and digestive system cancers.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.18
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• pp.8327-8333
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• 2016

Background: The recent epidemiologic transition in Thailand, with decreasing incidence of infectious diseases along with increasing rates of chronic conditions, including cancer, is a serious problem for the country. Breast cancer has the highest incidence rates among females throughout Thailand. Lampang is a province in the upper part of Northern Thailand. A study was needed to identify the current burden, and the future trends of breast cancer in upper Northern Thai women. Materials and Methods: Here we used cancer incidence data from the Lampang Cancer Registry to characterize and analyze the local incidence of breast cancer. Joinpoint analysis, age period cohort model and Nordpred package were used to investigate the incidences of breast cancer in the province from 1993 to 2012 and to project future trends from 2013 to 2030. Results: Age-standardized incidence rates (world) of breast cancer in the upper parts of Northern Thailand increased from 16.7 to 26.3 cases per 100,000 female population which is equivalent to an annual percentage change of 2.0-2.8%, according to the method used. Linear drift effects played a role in shaping the increase of incidence. The three projection method suggested that incidence rates would continue to increase in the future with incidence for women aged 50 and above, increasing at a higher rate than for women below the age of 50. Conclusions: The current early detection measures increase detection rates of early disease. Preparation of a budget for treatment facilities and human resources, both in surgical and medical oncology, is essential.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.18
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• pp.8359-8364
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• 2016

Background: Thailand has come to an epidemiologic transition with decreasing infectious diseases and increasing burden of chronic conditions, including cancer. Breast cancer has the highest incidence rates among females throughout Thailand. This study aimed to identify the current burden and the future trends of breast cancer of Lopburi, a province in the Central Thailand. Materials and Methods: We used cancer incidence data from the Lopburi Cancer Registry to characterize and analyze the incidence of breast cancer in Central Thailand. With joinpoint and age-period-cohort analyses, the incidence of breast cancer in the province from 2001 to 2010 and project future trends from 2011 to 2030 was investigated. Results: Age-adjusted incidence rates of breast cancer in Lopburi increased from 23.4 to 34.3 cases per 100,000 female population during the period, equivalent to an annual percentage change of 4.3% per year. Both period and cohort effects played a role in shaping the increase in incidence. Joinpoint projection suggested that incidence rates would continue to increase in the future with incidence for women ages 50 years and above increasing at a higher rate than for women below the age of 50. Conclusions: The current situation where early detection measures are being promoted could increase detection rates of the disease. Preparation of sufficient budget for treatment facilities and human resources, both in surgical and medical oncology, is essential for future medical care.