Breast Cancer Prognosis: Causes, Stages, Types & Treatment

Breast cancer is a kind of cancer that develops in the mammary gland. Breast cancer develops when cells in the breast multiply and proliferate uncontrollably, resulting in a lump of tissue known as a tumor. Breast cancer is the second most prevalent cancer detected in women following skin cancer. Here, we will talk about the various causes, treatments, and basics of breast cancer and how our team of the best medical oncologists in Delhi can help you with the disease at every stage. 

What is a Breast Cancer Prognosis?

A variety of variables influences the prognosis of breast cancer. These are some of them:

• The breast cancer subtype
• Breast cancer’s severity
• The growth of the lymph nodes in the breast cancer
• The ER situation
• The Status of HER2

Our specialists will evaluate the expected course and severity of the situation when patients obtain a breast cancer prognosis. This varies among individuals, and several factors influence prognosis, such as a person’s age as well as the kind, severity, and quantity of cancer. People with a dismal prognosis can sometimes live much longer. Breast cancer can sometimes recur in persons who have a good prognosis.

 Describe some causes of breast cancer

Fat, connective tissue, and hundreds of lobules make up a female’s breasts following puberty. Breast cancer occurs as a result of DNA destruction or genetic alterations. These can be linked to estrogen exposure, inherited genetic abnormalities, or hereditary cancer-causing genes like the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes.

The immune system of a healthy person targets any aberrant DNA or growths. This would not occur when an individual has cancer. As a result, cells in breast tissue proliferate at an uncontrollable rate and do not perish as they should. Uncontrolled cell growth leads to the formation of a tumor, which depletes the nutrients and energy supplied to nearby cells. 

What are the stages of breast cancer?

For breast cancer, there are two alternative staging methods. The first is known as “anatomic staging,” whereas the second is known as “prognostic staging.” The anatomically staging system is based on the parts of the body where breast cancer is diagnosed and aids in determining the best treatment options. 

The prognostic staging system aids medical providers in communicating how likely an individual is to be cancer-free if all necessary treatments are administered.

The following is the anatomic stage system:

Stage 0: The “breast cancer” spreads to the milk ducts, also known as “ductal carcinoma in situ.”

Stage I: Breast cancer is less than 2 cm in diameter and hasn’t migrated to any other organs, notably lymph nodes.

Stage II: The cancer size changes in this stage. It can be one of the following:

• The tumor is smaller than 2 cm in diameter, but it has progressed to the lymph nodes in the underarm (IIA).
• The tumor is 2 to 5 cm in diameter (with or without spread to the lymph nodes).
• The tumor is more than 5 centimeters in diameter and has not migrated to the lymph nodes beneath the arm (both IIB).

Stage III: In this stage, breast cancer is also called “Localized advanced breast cancer” The tumor can be any size and has malignant lymph nodes that stick to one another or the surrounding skin (IIIA). A tumor of just about any size that has progressed to the skin, chest, or inner mammary lymph nodes is classified as stage IIIB breast cancer.

Stage IV: Breast cancer is recognized as a tumor that has progressed to other body parts, such as the bone, organs, kidney, or central nervous system, irrespective of size.

What are the types of breast cancer?

The following are the most prevalent types of breast cancer:

• Infiltrating ductal carcinoma. This type of breast cancer starts to develop in the milk ducts. It subsequently bursts beyond the duct’s membrane and infiltrates the breast’s healthy tissue. The most frequent kind of breast cancer is responsible for almost 80% of cases in women.

• Ductal carcinoma in situ:  This is precancerous ductal carcinoma in its early stages (stage 0). The term “in situ” refers to a malignancy that hasn’t progressed outside its original location. The illness is limited to the milk ducts in this patient but has not spread to surrounding breast tissue. Ductal carcinoma in situ can progress to aggressive malignancy if left untreated. Almost all of them can be cured with proper treatment and diagnosis.

• Infiltrating (invasive) lobular carcinoma. This type of cancer starts in the breast’s lobules, wherein breast milk is generated, but it has progressed to the breast’s surrounding regions. This type of cancer is responsible for 10 to 15% of all cases. Mammograms may make it increasingly challenging to detect this malignancy.

What are some possible treatments for breast cancer?

Here are several treatment options possible with the guidance of breast cancer doctors in Delhi NCR, according to the stage of cancer and its diagnosis.

• Surgery

If surgery is required, the kind will be determined by the diagnosis as well as the patient’s preferences. Surgical procedures bybreast cancer doctors in Delhi NCR include:

• Lumpectomy: This procedure entails the removal of the tumor as well as a tiny quantity of healthy tissue surrounding it. A lumpectomy can hopefully minimize cancer from spreading.
• Mastectomy: A basic mastectomy entails removing the lobules, ducts, subcutaneous fat, nipple, areola, as well as some skin from the breast.

• Radiation therapy

The breast cancer doctors in Delhi NCR suggest radiation therapy a month following surgery. It entails using regulated doses of radiation to eliminate any residual cancer cells in the tumor.

• Chemotherapy

If there is a serious danger of relapse or development, a doctor might recommend cytotoxic chemotherapy medications to destroy cancer cells. Adjuvant chemotherapy is what physicians describe chemotherapy given after surgery. Before surgery, a doctor may suggest chemotherapy to reduce the tumor and make it simpler to remove. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy is the term for this type of treatment.

Breast cancer, as well as other cancer treatments, can have serious side effects. When choosing a therapy, communicate to the best breast oncologist in Delhi NCR about the potential dangers and explore strategies to reduce side effects.

Conclusion

Early identification, a novel customized approach to therapy, and a better knowledge of the illness have all contributed to an improvement in breast cancer survival statistics and a steady decrease in the number of fatalities linked with the disease. 

Our specialist, Dr. PK Das, is among the breast oncologists in the Delhi NCR region. Several individuals trust our treatment and diagnosis process, as Dr. PK Das and his team are among the best medical oncologists in Delhi.