Stages of Breast Cancer
Key Points for This Section
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After breast cancer has been diagnosed, tests are done to find
out if cancer cells have spread within the breast or to other parts of the
body.
The process used to find out whether the cancer has spread within the breast or to other
parts of the body is called staging.
The information gathered from the staging process determines the
stage of the disease. It is
important to know the stage in order to plan treatment.
The following stages are used for breast cancer:
Stage 0 (carcinoma in situ)
There are 2 types of breast carcinoma
in situ:
- Ductal carcinoma in
situ (DCIS) is a noninvasive, precancerous condition in which abnormal cells are found in the lining of a breast duct. The abnormal cells have not spread outside the duct to other tissues in the breast. In some cases, DCIS may become invasive cancer and spread to other tissues, although it is not known at this time how to predict which lesions will become invasive.
- Lobular carcinoma in
situ (LCIS) is a condition in which abnormal cells are found in the lobules of the breast. This condition seldom becomes invasive cancer; however, having lobular carcinoma in situ in one breast increases the risk of developing breast cancer in either breast.
Stage I
In stage I, the tumor
is 2 centimeters or smaller and has not spread outside the
breast.
Stage IIA
In stage IIA:
- no tumor is found in the breast, but cancer is found in the axillary lymph nodes (the
lymph nodes under the arm);
or
- the tumor is 2 centimeters or smaller and has spread
to the axillary lymph nodes;
or
- the tumor is between 2 and 5 centimeters but has not
spread to the axillary lymph nodes.
Stage IIB
In stage IIB, the tumor
is either:
- between 2 and 5 centimeters and has spread
to the axillary lymph nodes; or
- larger than 5 centimeters but has not
spread to the axillary lymph nodes.
Stage IIIA
In stage IIIA:
- no tumor is found in the breast, but cancer is found in axillary lymph nodes that are attached to each other or to other structures; or
- the tumor is 5 centimeters or smaller and has spread
to axillary lymph nodes that are attached to each other or to other structures; or
- the tumor is larger than 5 centimeters and has spread to axillary
lymph nodes that may or may not be attached to each other or to other
structures.
Stage IIIB
In stage IIIB, the
cancer may be any size and:
- has spread to tissues near the breast (the skin or
chest wall, including the ribs and
muscles in the chest); and
- may have spread to lymph nodes within the breast or under the arm.
Stage IIIC
In stage IIIC, the
cancer:
- has spread to lymph nodes beneath the collarbone and near the neck; and
- may have spread to lymph nodes within the breast or under the arm and to tissues near the breast.
Stage IIIC breast cancer is divided into operable and inoperable stage IIIC. In operable stage IIIC, the cancer: - is found in 10 or more of the lymph nodes under the arm; or
- is found in the lymph nodes beneath the collarbone and near the neck on the same side of the body as the breast with cancer; or
- is found in lymph nodes within the breast itself and in lymph nodes under the arm.
In inoperable stage IIIC breast cancer, the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes above the collarbone and near the neck on the same side of the body as the breast with cancer.
Stage IV
In stage IV, the cancer
has spread to other organs of the body, most often the bones,
lungs, liver, or brain.
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