Stages Of Breast Cancer

The breast cancer is becoming the most common cancer in the United States of America due to change in the lifestyles. The development and the spreading of the breast cancer is divided into different stages. There are four stages of Breast Cancer that explains the intensity of the growth of the cancer cells in the body. The cancer in the breast is in the form of a lump or a tumor that can be felt when it gets bigger in size. There are many ways to find out the stage of the breast cancer, the clinical breast exam, the biopsy and the screening tests that are conducted in the laboratory including chest x-ray, mammogram, bone scan, CT scan and MRI scan. The blood tests are also done but they are not related to finding the stage of cancer but the overall health of the woman. The stage of cancer is denoted by symbols, some of the examples are TX, which means that tumor cannot be assessed, T0, no evidence of tumor and so on.

Different Stages Of Breast Cancer

Starting from the 0 stage in which the cells are present in the lining of the breast lobule or a duct and is restricted to this area only and has not spread to the fatty tissues of the breast. In the stage I, the cancer spreads from ducts to the fatty tissues of the breast. This stage is called invasive stage of cancer. At this stage, the size of the tumor is 2 cm or less and it has not spread to the lymph nodes. In stage II, the size of the cancer increases from 2 cm to 5 cm in diameter and now chances are high that the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes. In the stage III A, the tumor is either 5 cm or greater in diameter. There is one more stage of breast cancer that is called Advanced Breast Cancer, that includes the stage III B/C and IV. The III B is the locally advanced stage in which no matter what the size of tumor is, but it has now spread into the skin of the breast and the chest wall. The stage IV that is also called Metastatic Cancer, now the cancer has spread into the other parts of the body too like the bones, liver, lungs and the brain.
The Breast Cancer experts can tell by seeing the reports of the Breast Cancer Patient that what are the chances of her survival and for how long can she live. People who have diagnosed with the stage 0 and 1, there is 100 % chances of survival of five years even after the diagnosis. The survival rate decreases after seven years of diagnosis in the later stages but this may vary from person to person. The researchers are trying to find new treatment to prolong the life of the Breast Cancer Patients. Catch the Breast Cancer at early stage to live a healthy and happy life.

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