Stages Of Breast Cancer

Breast cancer can be classified according to the severity of the disease which the medical books call as stages. The various stages of breast cancer will show doctors the size, location, the number of lymph nodes affected, and whether the cancer is invasive or not. Staging breast cancer is essential in formulating treatment schemes, and in the assessment of a patient’s prognosis.

TNM staging system involves the T-stage or tumor information, the N-stage or nearby lymph nodes, and the M-stage or distant metastases. The TNM stages describes the extent of the breast cancer according to Roman numerals 0 to IV. Thus, breast cancer stages are grouped from 0 to 4.

Stage 0 is the stage that describes breast cancer that is non-invasive. This means that no cancer cells are found to have disintegrated from the area of the breast originally affected, or are attacking the normal neighboring tissues. Lobular Carcinoma In Situ or LCIS, and Ductal Carcinoma In Situ or DCIS, which are both pre-cancerous conditions of the breast fall into the stage 0.

Stage 1 breast cancer illustrates an invasive type of breast cancer. This means that cancer cells are starting to invade the unaffected tissue nearby. In this stage, lymph nodes are not yet involved and the cancer hasn’t spread to other areas, although the size of the tumor is about two centimeters across.

Stage 2 breast cancer is further divided into two groups, namely stage 2A and stage 2B. Stage 2A means that either the tumor present in the breast is smaller than two centimeters and may be found under the arm but hasn’t spread; or the tumor present is more than two centimeters but less than five, but none can be found under the arm; or the breast doesn’t have a tumor but one can be found under the arm, although it hasn’t spread yet.

Stage 2B means either of the following situations: the tumor in the breast is no more than five centimeters and the underarm has cancer as well, although it hasn’t started to spread yet; or the tumor is more than 5 centimeters in the breast but none can be seen under the arm, and it has not spread to the other parts of the body.

Stage 3 breast cancer is also further divided into three groups. Stage 3A can be either of the following: no tumor is present in the breast but there is cancer under the arm, and it has not spread to other areas yet; or the tumor in the breast is not more than five centimeters and while the cancer has not spread, the underarm contains cancer as well; or the tumor’s size is bigger than five centimeters and there is cancer under the arm, but spread has not been observed.

Stage 3B means the tumor present in the breast is stuck to the chest wall or skin, but cancer has not invaded other areas.

Stage 4 breast cancer means the tumor present can be of any size, either lymph nodes has or doesn’t have cancer cells, and the cancer has invaded other areas of the body like the bones, lungs, or liver.

Breast cancer patients who also have cancer in the lymph nodes of the armpit does not mean they are in stage 4. This last stage only points out the cancer which has attacked other organs in the body aside from the breast area.

The various stages of breast cancer may seem like jail term for some people affected with the disease. For others, it feels like being in death row awaiting final execution. But these should not have negative connotation. After all, the stages of breast cancer will also tell a person the best ways to deal with the disease and improve her chances of survival.