Contempory drawing of Marco Polo

     Needless to say the Polos became a sensation and attracted crowds of listeners who wanted to hear about their adventures in China and the incredible things they saw. Many people however, had difficulties in believing their reports. What proof was there? According to a late tradition, since they did not believe him, Marco Polo invited them all to dinner one night during which the Polos dressed in the simple clothes of a peasant in China. Shortly before the crowds ate, the Polos opened their pockets to reveal hundreds of rubies and other jewels that they had received in Asia. Though they were much impressed, the people of Venice remained sceptical and still doubted the stories that were told. The stories were simply just too incredulous to believe. As yet Marco had not put pen to paper to describe his adventures but before he did so he was later captured in a minor clash of the war between Venice and Genoa and imprisoned.

     It was while Marco was incarcerated in the few months of his imprisonment, in 1298, that he dictated to a fellow prisoner, Rustichello da Pisa, a detailed account of his travels in the then-unknown parts of the Far East. His book, Il Milione (the title comes from either "The Million", then considered a gigantic number, or from Polo's family nickname Emilione), was written in Old French and entitled Le divisament dou monde ("The description of the world"). The book was soon translated into many European languages and is known in English as The Travels of Marco Polo. The original is lost and there are now several often-conflicting versions of the translations. The book became an instant success quite an achievement in a time when printing was not known in Europe.

     Although the Polos were by no means the first Europeans to reach China overland thanks to Marco's book their trip was the first to be widely known, and the best-documented until then. Marco Polo's description of the Far East and its riches inspired Christopher Columbus to try to reach those lands by a western route and a heavily annotated copy of Polo's book was among the belongings of Columbus. Since then historians have been able to piece together the history of the country thanks to the record keeping that the Chinese were meticulous in keeping. China turned out to be one of the world's longest periods of mostly uninterrupted civilisation and had the world's longest continuously used written language system. However, in common with the rest of the world, China's history was largely characterised by repeated divisions and reunifications amid alternating periods of peace and war, and violent imperial dynastic change. The country's territorial extent expanded outwards from a core area in the North China Plain, and varied according to its changing fortunes to include multiple regions of East, Northeast, and Central Asia.

     What is of considerable interest as far as this book is concerned is that, unlike the rest of the world, breast cancer was a known disease in China. The identification of breast cancer and other breast conditions dates back to the Tang Dynasty (618-907) in classics such as Sun-su miao's Qian Jin Yao Fang (Thousand Golden Prescriptions). Sun-su miao called a particular breast condition Ru Yan, or breast rocks. Its description is similar to late stage breast cancer in modern western medicine and was considered difficult to treat. According to the Essentials of Conformation in Chinese Medicine and Terminology of Chinese Medicine there are seven classical categories of breast disease:

• 1. Ru Yong, "Breast abscess" - similar to mastitis; obstruction of milk due to OPI
• 2. Ru Zhu, "Breast ulcers" - similar to above, but ulcers from inside the breast
• 3. Ru Gan. "Breast ulcers" - eruptions on the nipples
• 4. Ru Li, "Breast swelling" - swelling in the middle of areola
• 5. Ru Pi, "Chronic breast swelling" - a movable egg shaped lump in the breast
• 6. Ru Lao, "Breast consumption" - a hard mass inside the breast that may burst and spread and heat internally
• 7. Ru Lou, "Breast leakage" - galactorrhea

     Although, these eight breast conditions were identified, ancient Chinese medicine did not have a concept of cancer or malignancy and could not differentiate lumps according to whether they were benign or malignant. However, the doctors were well aware of the seriousness and poor prognosis of certain types of lump, and Ru Yan indicated a lump which was difficult to treat and often led to death.

     The complete Manual of Ulcers (Chuang Yang Jing Yan Quan Shu) of the later dynasty of Song (AD.960-1277) does provide treatment methods that give a correct indication on prognosis. It described that if it is not broken it can be treated, if it is broken it is difficult to treat. The earlier it is treated, the better. If it bursts inside it burns the flesh; it spreads to the internal organs and causes death.28 This description clearly shows that although the ancient Chinese did not have a conception of malignancy, they did appreciate that Ru Yan could spread from the breast to the internal organs and leading to death, just like our modern understanding of breast cancer. That Ru Yan was breast cancer is reinforced In the Beneficial Formulae of the Great Compendium of Gynaecology (Fu Ren Da Quan Liang Fang, 1273). The book differentiates between breast carbuncle (yong) and lump (yan) saying that the former is characterised by redness, swelling and heat, the latter by its process of development. In the beginning, says the book, there is a small accumulation like a turtle egg which is not red nor painful, after several months it gets bigger, then the lump breaks up like a ripe pomegranate, it bursts through, as though in a deep hole. This was interpreted as being due to the Liver and Spleen being affected by anger, Qi and Blood are exhausted and it is called Ru Yan.

Contempory drawing of Women of the Tang Dynasty

     So during the time when Europe was in the throes of the Dark Ages, in China reports of breast cancer and its treatment was being recorded. We need to ask ourselves, in view of what we have learned elsewhere in this book, why it was the Chinese suffered from the disease while other cultures around the world did not. The key is that unlike other cultures around the world where women were either naked, topless or wore long flowing garments with breasts unrestricted at this time, in China clothing was always worn, accept when bathing. But what is highly significant about this is that besides clothes that Chinese women wore on the outside of their bodies, they also wore an inner under garment. Now comes the clincher! Chinese women wore a brassiere very much like our modern ones. Once again another jigsaw puzzle drops into place. Under the circumstances, how can anybody say that wearing bra-like garments has nothing to do with breast cancer?

     There is more... Historians regard the Tang dynasty, during which time the reports of breast cancer began to be reported, as a high point in Chinese civilisation. Its territory, acquired through the military campaigns of its early rulers, was greater than that of the Han period, and rivalled that of the later Yuan Dynasty and Qing Dynasty. Stimulated by contact with India and the Middle East, the Empire saw a flowering of creativity in many fields. Buddhism, originating in India around the time of Confucius, continued to flourish during the Tang period and was adopted by the imperial family, becoming thoroughly integrated and a permanent part of Chinese traditional culture. It was also at this time when women's clothing underwent a transformation, which included short jackets, and the change of neckline. In addition to round, square, tilted, straight and V-neck shapes there also appeared open necklines for the first time. Dress of the Tang Dynasty has become a type of ceremonial dress and national costume to be worn on festivals and traditional holidays ever since.

     It is a unique phenomenon in ancient China that women expressed their inner feelings by wearing different underwear. That may sound incredulous to us today, but one has to remember that China like most other countries was a male dominated world. Hence, since women did not have the right to say what was in their minds, some chose to express their ideas through their underwear, where only their intimate partners could witness what they wore under their outer garments. 29 It is also said that the amazing variety of ancient brassieres was owed to the fact that women's outer garments were strictly governed by rank. Their only chance of distinguishing themselves from other women was through individualist styles of underwear. 30 What do these ancient Chinese brassieres look like? Chinese archaeologists have recently discovered a brassiere in a tomb in Northern China at least 1,000 years old, dating to the Liao Dynasty (916 - 1125). The cotton-padded brassiere was golden in colour, described as daintily designed and was very similar in style and in function to those worn by modern women today. Shao Guotian, head of the Aohan Banner Museum, said that the bra "was made of fine silk and had shoulder strings and back strings just like brassieres of today." "It's a pity", she said "most of the cotton padding in the cups had already decayed."

     It is evident that not all women wore a bra in China in later times, and it may have only been the 'status garment' of the higher social groups. Around the time the Black Death was sweeping Europe, most Chinese women had adopted a new garment, which was lighter and less restrictive. It was called a "dudou" and it had developed from the bodice worn in the Ming dynasty (1368-1644). From henceforth the dudou continued to be worn by women and children up to the early years of the twentieth century. It consisted of a kind of apron that was narrow at the neck with a wider curved base and was held to the body by a silver chain or tape around the neck and waist. At the base of the apron there would often be a pocket stretching across the full width of the garment. Made of cotton or red silk, these little aprons were richly embroidered with auspicious symbols. Another type, sometimes called a moneybag, was a shallow embroidered pouch for daily necessities worn around the waist and over the stomach to fasten with tapes at the back. Bamboo jackets, vests, and aprons were also worn in hot weather to aid air circulation, and to prevent outer garments from being soiled with perspiration.

For thousands of years, Chinese women and girls wore a traditional undergarment called a "Du Dou, (doudou)" which literally means "belly cover." Legend has it that one of the most famous Chinese Four Beauties, Yang Yuhuan, the concubine of the Emperor of Tang Dynasty (AD 618 - 907), invented the Dudou. These ancient bras were a common undergarment during the Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644) and also in the Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911). Dudous are cut very simple - just a square or rhomboidal piece of silk with ribbons that tie around the neck and the back. Unlike bras today it did not hinder breast movement or compress the lymphatic system

     The dudou once the hidden part of women's attire in ancient times has now become the daily wear of the bold and vanguard young ladies in summer. Two thin strings are tied behind the neck and a knot is also casually tied on the back. The navel is discernible at one moment and gone the next behind the diamond-shaped cloth. The dudou is more akin to a camisole, rather than a bra, and it was considerably less restrictive. "Ancient bras were closer to suspender shirts or slip dresses, designed to cover the breasts and the belly."32 This might account for the fact that breast cancer, though still existing in Chinese society was fairly rare, so that by the beginning of the twentieth century, the statistics for the disease was amongst the lowest in the world.

     "During the 1920s and '30s, bras took a form similar to a vest with buttons in the middle Subsequently, they were influenced by Western styles, evolving into the modern bra", so says Lu Chang in his article Keeping abreast of change in the Shanghai Star. That being the case, we would expect to see Chinese statistics to show an increase in breast cancer in recent years, allowing for the cultural revolution (1966-1969) and its aftermath when anything western was frowned upon and not tolerated. Guess what? We do. According to the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association (CACA):

"According to the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association (CACA), more than 300 million women are at risk for breast cancer in China, making it one of the most common cancers among women in the country. The death rate from breast cancer has increased by 3% annually in recent years, making breast cancer the biggest killer of Chinese women. In the past 10 years, diagnosis of breast cancer has increased by at least 27% and death rates in China's major cities have risen approximately 38%, replacing lung cancer as the most immediate cancer threat in China and reaching the levels of western countries. Forty percent of Chinese women diagnosed with breast cancer die within five years because the cancer is already very advanced when diagnosed. The highest risk age group for Chinese women is between the ages of 40 and 49."

"Our results suggest that direct and indirect consequences of westernisation may have been responsible for most of the observed increase in breast cancer incidence. As China moves towards a more westernised way of life, we can expect an emerging epidemic of breast cancer as Hong Kong's experience has demonstrated."

"Victims of breast and cervical cancers in China have been increasing at an alarming rate during the past two decades, and the situation will only worsen if no precautions are taken," said Ha, a renowned researcher of gynaecological diseases at the Chinese Medicine Institute in Tianjin. Statistics from the Shanghai public health bureau show that the ratio of breast cancer victims per 100,000 women almost tripled from 1992 to 2002"

SOURCE: Excerpted fron Breast Cancer "Prevention and Cure" Your Choice! by Fred Harding