Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in expectant mothers during pregnancy. During pregnancy, the breasts mature and grow in order to produce milk. For this reason, noticing a lump in the breast becomes harder, and the diagnosis of lumps that may be malignant can be delayed. It is recommended that women who are planning a pregnancy have breast examinations before pregnancy, that they consult a physician who specializes in breast cancer when they feel a lump in the breast during pregnancy, and that they pay particular attention to this issue if there is a family history of breast cancer.
Because of the physical changes that occur during pregnancy, recognizing and treating pathologies that may develop in the breast is a difficult process. Although breast cancer is very rare in pregnancy, a delay in diagnosis makes the healing process more difficult. Since the age of pregnancy has exceeded the 30s and 40s in recent years, the risk of encountering breast cancer during pregnancy at these ages is also increasing.
Studies have shown that terminating the pregnancy when breast cancer is diagnosed provides no additional benefit in cancer treatment. Only in metastatic breast cancer, that is, breast cancer that has spread to other organs of the body, during pregnancy can the pregnancy be terminated so that chemotherapy can be started in the first three months. If breast cancer is diagnosed in the second or third trimester of pregnancy, treatment can be given with chemotherapy drugs suitable for the patient’s condition. For the expectant mother who cannot receive radiotherapy, the treatment process that starts with chemotherapy continues with radiation therapy after birth.
Breast cancer surgery can be performed safely during the second and third trimesters of pregnancy.
A mother with breast cancer can breastfeed her child after the treatment is completed.
An expectant mother who has beaten breast cancer is allowed to become pregnant 2-3 years after the treatment process.
It is also possible for women who plan to have children after breast cancer treatment to lose their fertility during the treatment process. For this reason, freezing eggs or embryos before the treatment process may be preferred. After cancer treatment, expectant mothers can also have children by the in vitro fertilization (IVF) method.
