The American Cancer Society estimates that fewer people will die fromcancer in the year 2004. According to its Cancer Facts & Figures 2004report, the organization predicts that less people will die from lung,colon, breast, and prostate cancers. However, cancer will remain thesecond leading cause of death in the United States, after heart disease.The decline in cancer deaths is most likely due to improvements incancer screening and treatment strategies.

The discovery of a breast lump--whether by chance, during a routinebreast self-exam, or during a clinical breast exam--can be stressful fora woman. This article discusses what a woman should do if she finds alump, what signs suggest a lump is likely to be cancerous, how breastlumps are evaluated by physicians, and breast lumps during pregnancy.

Maintaining a well-balanced diet during breast cancer treatment can helppatients better cope with side effects, regain strength, and rebuildtissues damaged by cancer. However, some patients may find itdifficult to eat well during treatment due to certain side effects (suchas nausea or diarrhea) or the emotional burden a diagnosis of breastcancer can bring. This section discusses the importance of maintaininga healthy diet during breast cancer treatment and offers suggestions onhow to cope with side effects of treatment that may affect a patient'seating habits.

The drug tamoxifen has been shown to be highly effective at treatingbreast cancer, decreasing the chances of a cancer recurrence, andpreventing the disease in women at high risk. However, researchers saythat antidepressant drugs, which some women take to help relievetamoxifen's side effects, may actually interfere with tamoxifen. In arecent study, the antidepressant drug, Paxil (generic name, paroxetine)disrupted the metabolism of tamoxifen in a small group of women. Furtherstudies are needed to investigate this drug interaction. Given the smallsize of the study and the fact that antidepressant drugs are veryhelpful in treating hot flashes, a common side effect of tamoxifen, theresearchers do not recommend that women taking tamoxifen stop usingantidepressants at this time.