Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women and second leading cause of cancer death among American women. In 2009, approximately 194,280 patients are estimated to be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer and 62,280 with carcinoma in situ. An estimated 40,610 will die from this disease. For a woman of average risk is the lifetime incidence of breast cancer, one of eight.
Tumor markers in breast cancer used in the clinic is CA 15-3, CEA (carcinoembyonic antigen) and CA 27-29. All have a low sensitivity and specificity, and therefore not useful in detecting early breast cancer. Read the rest of this entry »