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About Breast Cancer

Breast cancer was the most common cancer in women in 2009, with 4606 new cases of breast cancer diagnosed in that year in NSW. The incidence of breast cancer increased, with 15, 270 cases of breast cancer Australia-wide in 2012. By 2021, 17,210 will be diagnosed.

 

A woman’s breast is made up of 15 to 20 segments (lobes) in which there are smaller segments (lobules). These lobules are connected by tubes (ducts) that eventually join up and lead to main ducts at the nipple. The lobules are the milk producing parts of the breast. THe ducts help to take the milk to the nipple during breastfeeding. In between the ducts and lobules there is fat fibrous tissue holding all the structures together.