Skip to main content

Breast Cancer

Sean T. Canale, MD, FACS -  - Oncoplastic Breast Surgery

Carolina Breast Care Specialists, PA

Sean T. Canale, MD, FACS

Oncoplastic Breast Surgery located in Raleigh, NC

In the U.S., one in eight women has a breast cancer diagnosis during their life. With more than 20 years of experience in breast care, Dr. Sean T. Canale, MD, FACS, at Carolina Breast Care Specialists, PA, offers women in Raleigh, North Carolina, the most advanced and comprehensive care available in a friendly, non-hospital setting. To schedule a same-day, next-day, or second opinion breast cancer consultation, call Carolina Breast Care Specialists, or book an appointment online today.

Breast Cancer Q & A

What is breast cancer?

Breast cancer originates when breast cells mutate and begin growing out of control. After skin cancer, it’s the second most common cancer in American women.

You can develop several types of breast cancer in specific areas of your breast, including your ducts, the glands that make milk (lobules), and any of the tissue in between. Breast cancers can vary from noninvasive to invasive as well as metastatic. If cancer is metastatic, it can spread to other areas of your body.

Though most breast cancer cases involve women, it can also develop in men.

What are the symptoms of breast cancer?

Breast cancer symptoms can vary, but might include:

  • A lump in the breast
  • Thickened areas of breast tissue
  • Changes in the shape, size, or appearance of your breast
  • A newly inverted nipple
  • Visible scaling, peeling, or crusting of the breast skin or around your nipple

Some types of breast cancer can also cause changes in your overall breast skin, like redness, dimpling, or pitting that resembles the surface of an orange.

How is breast cancer diagnosed?

Dr. Canale usually diagnoses breast cancer through a physical exam, digital imaging procedures like mammograms and ultrasounds, and by testing irregular breast cells through a tissue biopsy.

After reaching a diagnosis, Dr. Canale also determines the extent of your disease through blood tests, bone scans, and screenings like CT and PET scans.

How is breast cancer treated?

As the only private breast care specialist in the area, Dr. Canale works closely with you to provide a personalized and supportive breast cancer treatment plan. With specialized training in breast care, Dr. Canale also strives to provide the most advanced and least invasive treatments whenever possible.

Based on the type and extent of your breast cancer, Dr. Canale might recommend a variety of surgical treatments, including:

  • Lumpectomy to remove your tumor as well as small amounts of healthy tissue
  • Mastectomy to remove all of your breast tissue
  • Sentinel lobe biopsy to remove portions of your lymph nodes from your underarm
  • Axillary lymph node dissection to remove all of your lymph nodes

In addition to surgical treatment to manage breast cancer, Dr. Canale might also suggest chemotherapy drugs that destroy cancer cells throughout your body or radiation treatments that use targeted beams of energy to kill cancer in a specific area.

Call Carolina Breast Care Specialists, or schedule an appointment online today.