Breast cancer

What are lymph vessels?

Just as blood vessels carry blood,

lymph vessels
Lymph vessels are part of your body's lymphatic system. This system moves lymph fluid through your body. This fluid carries proteins, white blood cells and other substances. Lymph vessels carry fluid between your lymph nodes.

lymph vessels carry

lymph fluid
Lymph is a clear or whitish liquid that is collected from all over the body and flows through the lymphatic vessels and lymph nodes (also called glands). It contains proteins and fats, some red blood cells, and many white blood cells, especially lymphocytes. Lymphocytes help the body fight infection.

lymph. Lymph vessels are very thin, and usually you can't see them.

Lymph is a fluid that surrounds tissues and organs. It is taken up by the lymph vessels and flows back into the bloodstream. This fluid:

Carries waste products from around your body
Carries cells that are part of the

immune system
The immune system is made up of the parts of the body that are devoted to fighting infection. The body is constantly being threatened by infections from things like bacteria, viruses and parasites. The immune system fights these infections in different ways. At the microscopic level, the immune system uses antibodies and white blood cells, which travel in the blood and target infectious agents, such as bacteria. These microscopic parts of the immune system either kill the infectious agent directly, or take it to other parts of the body, like the spleen, where it can be dealt with. The lymph nodes are another important part of the immune system. Within them, white blood cells filter through the foreign material that has entered the blood, to see if there are any infections. When you have a swollen gland during a cold, this is actually a lymph node that is reacting to the infection. Unfortunately, it is possible for the immune system to become confused and to use its destructive powers to target healthy parts of the body. Diseases that result from this type of situation are called autoimmune diseases.

immune system and help fight infections
Contains

proteins
A lot of your body's tissues are made out of proteins. Proteins can be made in your cells. Proteins are also part of the food you eat, particularly meat and dairy products. Your body breaks down the protein you eat into amino acids. Your cells then use these amino acids to build new proteins, which make up muscles, joints, hair and other parts of your body.

protein.

The lymph vessels take the fluid to your

lymph nodes
Lymph nodes (also called glands) are small, bean-shaped lumps that you cannot usually see or easily feel. They are located in various parts of the body, such as the neck, armpit and groin. Lymph nodes filter the lymph fluid and remove unusual things, such as bacteria and cancer cells.

lymph nodes. These small collections of cells are part of your immune system. They are found all over your body, such as in your groin, the backs of your knees and under your chin. They are small, round or oval lumps that you can't usually feel unless you are skinny or have an infection that has made them swollen.

Lymph fluid from the breast travels to your armpit (which doctors sometimes call the axilla). If there are cancer cells in your breast, they may be picked up by the lymph fluid and carried to the lymph nodes in your armpit. The cancer cells may continue growing in your armpit or travel on through your lymph vessels to other parts of your body. These cancer cells may die off or start growing.

About 5 percent of the lymph fluid from your breast goes to another group of lymph nodes called the internal mammary chain. These lymph nodes lie under your breastbone in the center of your chest.

You can't tell if breast cancer has spread to the lymph nodes in your armpit unless at least one of them is removed by surgery and checked for cancer cells under a microscope.

Breast cancer cells can also be picked up by blood vessels in the breast and can travel around the body in your bloodstream. They may then grow somewhere else in the body. This is why women with breast cancer are sometimes given drugs that treat the whole body. This type of treatment (known as systemic treatment) reduces the chance that the cancer will appear somewhere else in your body.

This information was last updated on May 11, 2009

This information is for educational use only, and is not a substitute for prompt professional medical advice. Readers should always consult a physician or other professional for advice and treatment.
© BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2009. All rights reserved.

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