Stages of Breast Cancer

Breast Cancer takes place when normal cells in a tissue start growing and dividing in an uncontrollable manner. At times (but not always), these cells can form a tumor in the breast, that can be detected in a mammogram prior to the discovery of a lump or thickening. However, all lumps do not automatically indicate breast cancer and all breast cancers do not begin with lumps. Though, all lumps and thickenings do need immediate medical attention to determine whether they are harmless or constitute the initial stages of Breast Cancer.

The Stage of Cancer determines the size of the tumor of the cells and whether or not those cells still remain at the place of origin.

Determining the stage is an important precursor to administering proper treatment.

Stage 0

Stage 0 cancers are also known as ‘Carcinoma in Situ’. ‘Carcinoma’ means Cancer and ‘Situ’ means place of origin. Three possible types of Stage 0 Breast Cancers are:

DCIS (Ductal Carcinoma in Situ)-In DCIS, Cancer cells begin to develop in the lining of the milk ducts. They do not spread outside duct or lobules to the surrounding tissue. At this stage, Cancer is easily treatable but if left unchecked, can spread to the surrounding tissue.

LCIS (Lobular Carcinoma in Situ)-In LCIS, growth of non-invasive abnormal cells takes place in the lobules. While this isn’t directly considered Cancer, it indicates the increased risk of a woman contracting Breast Cancer.

Stage 1:

Stage 1 is divided into Stage 1A and Stage 1B. In this stage, Cancer is evident and its presence isn’t limited to the area where first the abnormal cells developed. Cancer in this stage can be effectively treated.

Stage 1A: In this stage, the size of the tumor of the cells is smaller than a peanut(lesser than 2 cm) and has not spread to the lymph nodes.

Stage 1B: In this stage, Cancer cells have spread to the lymph nodes with the size of their cluster ranging from 0.2 mm to 2 mm. In this case, their might be no actual tumor in the breast or the present tumor would less than the size of a peanut (less than 2 cm)

Stage 0 and Stage 1 of Breast Cancer can be treated with surgery or radiation or a combination of both. There is no Chemotherapy needed at these stages.

Stage 2

In this Stage, the Cancer begins to spread. However, it is often contained only to the Breast or spreads to nearby lymph nodes. Stage 2 Breast Cancer is known to respond well to treatment.

Stage 2A:

Stage 2 means either three of the following things;

- There is no tumor present and Cancerous cells have spread to less than 4 auxiliary lymph nodes.

-The tumor is less than 2 cm and has spread to less than 4 auxiliary lymph nodes.

-The tumor is between 2-5 cm and has not spread to any of the lymph nodes.

Stage 2B

Stage 2B Cancer can be determined by either of the following conditions:

-The tumor is between 2 and 5 cm and has spread to less than 4 auxiliary lymph nodes.

-The tumor size exceeds 5 cm and has not spread to any lymph nodes.

Stage 3

In Stage 3 of Breast Cancer, the Cancer has extended beyond the immediate region of the tumor to nearby lymph nodes and muscles. However, it hasn’t yet spread to faraway organs. While this is an advanced stage of Breast Cancer, there are a growing number of effective treatment options.

Stage 3A

Stage 3A can be determined by either of the following:

-The tumor is less than 2 cm and Cancer has spread to 4-9 Lymph nodes.

-The tumor is larger than 5 cm and some Cancer clusters can be found in the lymph nodes.

-The tumor is larger than 5 cm and Cancer less have spread to lymph nodes near the breastbone or underarm.

Stage 3B

In Stage 3B, the tumor can be of any size and has invaded the chest wall or the breast skin, with the presence of swelling and inflammation. The Breast Cancer may have also spread to around 9 nearby lymph nodes.

Stage 3C

Stage 3C can be indicated by any of the following:

-There is no tumor or the tumor could be of any size and the tumor has spread to 10 or more lymph nodes.

-There is no actual tumor in the breast or the tumor can be of any size and Cancer has spread to lymph nodes adjacent to the collar bone.

-There is no actual tumor or the tumor can be of any size and lymph nodes under the arm and those in the breastbone contain Cancer.

Stage 3 Cancer is split into operable and inoperable Stage 3C cancer. Inoperable doesn’t indicate untreatable. It means that merely a surgery isn’t enough to cure it. A treatment prior to the surgery would be used to shrink the size of the Breast Cancer.

Stage 4

Under Stage 4, Cancer has spread to the brain,bones, lungs and liver. Although Stage 4 is considered incurable, advances in research and medical technology have led an increasing number of women to treat it as a chronic condition, where given proper treatment one’s life can be extended to a number of years. 

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