breast cancer surgeon in delhi Archives | Dr. Geeta Kadayaprath

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I am often asked why does breast cancer happen? And the only honest answer I come up with is ‘I don’t know. There are risk factors but there is no absolute association of breast cancer with these risk factors! Not a very confidence inspiring answer but that is the reality. The truth is that in a developed country like USA,1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime while in India,1 in 25-30 women in the urban population and 1 in 65-70 women in the rural areas will be diagnosed with the same. That may seem reassuring but in absolute numbers we are way ahead of America.

The western world has a well-oiled mammographic screening program to detect breast cancers early. We do not have one and probably the incidence as of now, does not justify such an exercise. The real worry, however, is that in India and other developing countries, more lives are lost to breast cancer compared to the west. So what is it that they are doing right which we are not? Some things are quite obvious, that they have better access to uniform healthcare and they are quite mindful and aware of the problem of breast cancer. Our cup of woes is overflowing- the larger population has no access to primary healthcare let alone tertiary care.

With every passing day, the problem of breast cancer is growing and it is imperative that we do what we can to turn the tide. It is rather unfortunate that about 50-60%of breast cancers in our country are detected in advanced stages. It is therefore not surprising that more than 50% of patients diagnosed with breast cancer would succumb to the disease. For a country like ours, the only useful tool to tackle breast cancer would be –EARLY DETECTION! It is a known fact that the only method to improve outcomes in breast cancer is by catching the disease early. For us, becoming familiar with our own breasts and making others around us breast aware is the need of the hour.

Breast Self Examination

Breast self examination (BSE) is an extremely simple procedure to carry out. You don’t need to set aside a special time to execute it. You can do so while you are taking a bath. Examination is so much simpler when your hand slips over the breast and you can detect any abnormal area in the breast quite easily. Breast self examination should be performed once a month, a week after your periods or if you are postmenopausal, on a fixed day every month which could coincide with your birthday or anniversary. Some breasts may be extremely lumpy and bumpy. You may perceive this as abnormal when you start examining yourself but a trip to a breast surgeon can allay your fears. The lumpy breast is your normal. What a regular breast self examination achieves is quite remarkable: it familiarizes you with the usual undulations in the breast in the same way as you are completely aware of all the speed breakers, curves and kerbs we encounter on our way from work to home even on a dim lit road.

Early Detection is the Key

EARLY DETECTION IS REALLY THE KEY! Any new finding in the breast needs to be seen, investigated and seen to its natural conclusion. PERIOD!! To remain healthy and disease free is what we all want, but to detect a problem and procrastinate can have serious consequences.

A woman, without doubt, is a multitasker- balancing her home and her work with dexterity unique to her. It is impossible to overemphasize the role a woman plays in the lives of the many who depend on her for their day-to-day needs. In the process, she often pushes back her needs. Her health almost always takes a backseat as she always has better things to do – FOR OTHERS!

Let us all pledge to become breast aware and inspire at least 10 other women to do the same. We certainly owe this much to ourselves and to all our loved ones………

Learn the technique of Breast Self-Examination @ https://youtu.be/49Usr5ASo8g


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Yesterday, I got a call at 7.00 in the morning. It was from a city about a 100 kilometers from Delhi. The gentleman at the other end, in a panic stricken voice was saying that his mother who had undergone a breast removal surgery for a right breast cancer a week ago, had a bout of vomiting and suddenly, the drain box attached to the operated site filled up with blood. I quickly remembered that this patient had had poor tolerance to chemotherapy and the chemo had been interrupted to perform surgery. She was a hypertensive and diabetic. It was 7 days from surgery and rather unusual for a bleed to happen. However, I asked him to Whatsapp me pics of the drain box and my worst fears were confirmed. She was bleeding and needed urgent attention.

I urged him to go to the nearby nursing home, get her vitals checked, get her started on iv fluids and seen by the local surgeon. He went to the best place there but no one there was forthcoming. The panic in the son was building to a crescendo, as his mom’s restlessness was only getting worse. I was constantly on the phone trying to guide him but when he saw that things were not moving at all, he quickly shifted his mom to his car and decided to drive down to my hospital. It was risky for someone who was bleeding to cover a 100+ kilometers. I pleaded with him to get an intravenous line inserted and fluids started. He said he was not getting anywhere and he would take the risk of driving her down to me.

He must have driven at breakneck speed. He was in the Hospital in 2 hours and in the next half hour, my surgical team, the anesthetist, nursing teams and the coordinators set about doing their jobs in a calm but brisk manner. The Blood Bank had been alerted and the samples sent. The patient was alert but getting to be a bit drowsy. She was wheeled into the Operation theatre, the wound was opened, a bleeder identified and taken care of, drains inserted and the wound sutured back. Two units of blood was transfused and her blood pressure slowly returned to normal and the pulse started to settle. The color was returning to her face and she was sent to the ICU for monitoring and another unit of transfusion.

At the end of it all, there was a sweeping sense of gratitude for the hospital I work in. She had been to a ‘best’ hospital in her city but there, first aid was hard to come by. There was no urgency to save a life. Here, at my hospital, a well orchestrated multidisciplinary team effort ensured that she got timely care and is now, on her path to recovery. I dread to think what may have happened, had they got stuck in a traffic jam and reached later than what they did.

There is no substitute to what you can achieve in the comfort of a well equipped hospital with a team of experienced professionals.

GRATITUDE ONLY!!


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She is only 23 years but her wisdom belies her age. When I interacted with her for the first time, my mask hid my that-is-not-at-all fair expression well…she was telling me all about her disease, her research project, her fiancé, her mother who had dealt with breast cancer and was fine and so on. She knew what triple negative breast cancer was all about, the impending chemo, the side effects, the prognosis… I was caught off guard at the end of the discussion. The roles were reversed…she was filling me in with all the information unlike the other way round.

She had her chemo and her resilience through it all was remarkable. Her mother and fiancé stood solidly by her throughout.

When it was time for surgery, even before I could start discussing the surgical options, she very matter-of-factly said that she wanted a double mastectomy without reconstruction as she had tested positive for a gene mutation.

She is done with surgery and has radiation to go through and while at it, she applied for post graduation to a university in UK and her application has been accepted. Whoa! I just love this super girl. And she is not done yet… her fiancé is having a lot of trouble convincing his parents about getting married to her. They will go ahead anyway. Superrrrr!!👍👍

Now that is UNCONDITIONAL LOVE… they are fully aware of what may happen but then life is about half chances. You win some, you lose some. Fear of what may happen, should not be allowed to win!!!

Best of luck, my Supergirl!!! Am truly proud of you!!

Darr ke aage hi jeet hai!!!