How Do You Treat Stage 2 Breast Cancer

How Immunotherapy Works For Cancer Treatment

Immunotherapy is a very new approach to cancer treatment. In the past, doctors and scientists believed that cancer cells could not be detected, and therefore, no treatment was needed. In the last few years, however, scientists have made some major discoveries. These discoveries have turned the tide in the battle against cancer.

If you have been diagnosed with cancer, you should be aware that immunotherapy may be an option for you.

Treating Stage Iii Colon Cancer

Stage III colon cancers have spread to nearby lymph nodes, but they have not yet spread to other parts of the body.

Surgery to remove the section of the colon with the cancer along with nearby lymph nodes, followed by adjuvant chemo is the standard treatment for this stage.

For chemo, either the FOLFOX or CapeOx regimens are used most often, but some patients may get 5-FU with leucovorin or capecitabine alone based on their age and health needs.

For some advanced colon cancers that cannot be removed completely by surgery, neoadjuvant chemotherapy given along with radiation might be recommended to shrink the cancer so it can be removed later with surgery. For some advanced cancers that have been removed by surgery, but were found to be attached to a nearby organ or have positive margins , adjuvant radiation might be recommended. Radiation therapy and/or chemo may be options for people who arent healthy enough for surgery.

Hormone Therapy For Postmenopausal Women

After menopause, hormone therapy for women with metastatic breast cancer can be an aromatase inhibitor, tamoxifen, fulvestrant or other hormone therapy drug.

If the first hormone therapy stops working and the cancer starts to grow again, a second hormone therapy can be used. If the second drug stops working, another can be tried.

Ovarian suppression isnt helpful for postmenopausal women because their ovaries have already stopped producing large amounts of estrogen.

You May Like: What Is Hr Positive Breast Cancer

Outlook By Hr And Her2 Status

Outlook also varies based on tumor characteristics, such as subtype.

For example, here are the 5-year relative survival rates for different combinations of HR and HER2 status:

• 92% for HR-positive, HER2-negative cancer
• 89% for HR-positive, HER2-positive cancer
• 83% for HR-negative, HER2-positive cancer
• 77% for HR-negative, HER2-negative cancer

Starting With Neoadjuvant Therapy

Most often, these cancers are treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy . For HER2-positive tumors, the targeted drug trastuzumab is given as well, sometimes along with pertuzumab . This may shrink the tumor enough for a woman to have breast-conserving surgery . If the tumor doesnt shrink enough, a mastectomy is done. Nearby lymph nodes will also need to be checked. A sentinel lymph node biopsy is often not an option for stage III cancers, so an axillary lymph node dissection is usually done.

Often, radiation therapy is needed after surgery. If breast reconstruction is done, it is usually delayed until after radiation is complete. In some cases, additional chemo is given after surgery as well.

After surgery, some women with HER2-positive cancers will be treated with trastuzumab for up to a year. Many women with HER2-positive cancers will be treated first with trastuzumab followed by surgery and then more trastuzumab for up to a year. If after neoadjuvant therapy, any residual cancer is found at the time of surgery, trastuzumab may be changed to a different drug, called ado-trastuzumab emtansine, which is given every 3 weeks for 14 doses. For people with hormone receptor-positive cancer in the lymph nodes who have completed a year of trastuzumab, the doctor might also recommend additional treatment with an oral drug called neratinib for a year.

You May Like: Side Effects Of Breast Cancer Chemo

Stage Iia & Iib Treatment Options

Stage II is divided into subcategories known as IIA and IIB.

In general, stage IIA describes invasive breast cancer in which:

• no tumor can be found in the breast, but cancer is found in 1 to 3 axillary lymph nodes or in the lymph nodes near the breast bone or
• the tumor measures 2 centimeters or smaller and has spread to the axillary lymph nodes or
• the tumor is larger than 2 cm but not larger than 5 cm and has not spread to the axillary lymph nodes

Still, if the cancer tumor measures between 2 and 5 cm and:

• has not spread to the lymph nodes or parts of the body away from the breast

it will likely be classified as stage IB.

Similarly, if the cancer tumor measures between 2 and 5 cm and:

• has not spread to the lymph nodes
• has an Oncotype DX Recurrence Score of 9

it will likely be classified as stage IA.

In general, stage IIB describes invasive breast cancer in which:

• the tumor is larger than 2 cm but no larger than 5 cm small groups of breast cancer cells larger than 0.2 mm but not larger than 2 mm are found in the lymph nodes or
• the tumor is larger than 2 cm but no larger than 5 cm cancer has spread to 1 to 3 axillary lymph nodes or to lymph nodes near the breastbone or
• the tumor is larger than 5 cm but has not spread to the axillary lymph nodes

Still, if the cancer tumor measures between 2 and 5 cm and:

• cancer is found in 1 to 3 axillary lymph nodes

Complementary And Alternative Medicine

Complementary and alternative medicine are medicines and health practices that are not standard cancer treatments. Complementary medicine is used in addition to standard treatments, and alternative medicine is used instead of standard treatments. Meditation, yoga, and supplements like vitamins and herbs are some examples.

Many kinds of complementary and alternative medicine have not been tested scientifically and may not be safe. Talk to your doctor about the risks and benefits before you start any kind of complementary or alternative medicine.

You May Like: Is Breast Cancer Curable In The 3 Stage

Abemaciclib Palbociclib And Ribociclib And Hormone Therapy

The CDK4/6 inhibitors FDA-approved for metastatic breast cancer treatment are:

• Abemaciclib
• Palbociclib
• Ribociclib

CDK4 and CDK6 are enzymes important in cell division. CDK4/6 inhibitors are a class of drugs designed to interrupt the growth of cancer cells.

Although the CDK4/6 inhibitors abemaciclib, palbociclib and ribociclib have not been compared directly to one another, studies show similar results with each drug .

A CDK4/6 inhibitor in combination with hormone therapy can be used to treat hormone receptor-positive, HER2-negative metastatic breast cancers. Compared to treatment with hormone therapy alone, this combination can give people more time before the cancer spreads and increase overall survival .

The CDK4/6 inhibitor abemaciclib may also be used alone to treat hormone receptor-positive, HER2-negative cancers that have progressed during past hormone therapy and chemotherapy .

Abemaciclib, palbociclib and ribociclib are pills.

The table below lists some possible side effects for CDK4/6 inhibitors.

Classifying Breast Cancer Tumors

In addition to using the numerical stage classifications, healthcare professionals also describe tumors using the tumor, node, metastasis staging system.

In this system, T describes tumor size, N describes the presence of cancer cells in the lymph nodes, and M describes whether or not the cancer has spread to other areas of the body.

Here are the possible classifications for tumor size :

• TX: Healthcare professionals cannot measure primary tumor size.
• T0: Healthcare professionals cannot find a tumor.
• T1: The tumor is smaller than 2 centimeters .
• T2: The tumor measures 25 cm.
• T2: The tumor is larger than 5 cm.
• T4: The tumor has spread beyond the breast tissue and lymph nodes or is inflammatory.

Here are the possible classifications for lymph node involvement :

• NX: Healthcare professionals cannot assess the lymph nodes.
• N0: The cancer has not spread to the surrounding nodes.
• N1, N2, N3: These indicate the number of nodes involved.

Here are the possible classifications for metastasis :

• M0: There is no sign that the cancer has spread .
• M1: The cancer has spread to another area of the body.
• MX: The cancer spread is not measurable.

Since 2018, healthcare professionals have added new cancer characteristics to the TNM staging system that may help guide treatment. These include:

Don’t Miss: Prognosis Of Stage 3 Breast Cancer

Time For Treatment And Prognosis

If you would like to know how long does it take to cure stage 2 breast cancer, your best chance is if you get an early diagnosis. Even then, you will only get a rough time estimate. There is no time-limit on how long stage 2 breast cancer treatment should take. Stage 2 breast cancer survival rate is relatively low due to late diagnosis. Timely and accurate treatment does a lot to lower stage 2 breast cancer recurrence rates.

Ask your doctor or healthcare provider for your stage 2 breast cancer prognosis. They are well informed and understand the various factors involved. Having seen the results any tests they asked you to undergo, the medical care provider is very well placed to give you a detailed prognosis. The prognosis should include timelines and outcomes of any treatment you will be receiving.

Breast Cancer: Types Of Treatment

Have questions about breast cancer? Ask here.

ON THIS PAGE: You will learn about the different types of treatments doctors use for people with breast cancer. Use the menu to see other pages.

This section explains the types of treatments that are the standard of care for early-stage and locally advanced breast cancer. Standard of care means the best treatments known. When making treatment plan decisions, you are strongly encouraged to consider clinical trials as an option. A clinical trial is a research study that tests a new approach to treatment. Doctors want to learn whether the new treatment is safe, effective, and possibly better than the standard treatment. Clinical trials can test a new drug and how often it should be given, a new combination of standard treatments, or new doses of standard drugs or other treatments. Some clinical trials also test giving less treatment than what is usually done as the standard of care. Clinical trials are an option to consider for treatment and care for all stages of cancer. Your doctor can help you consider all your treatment options. Learn more about clinical trials in the About Clinical Trials and Latest Research sections of this guide.

Read Also: How To Detect Breast Cancer Early

What Are The Complications Of Breast Cancer Recurrence

Breast cancer that comes back can be harder to treat. The same therapy isnt always effective again. Tumors can develop a tolerance to certain treatments like chemotherapy. Your healthcare provider will try other therapies. You may be able to try drugs under development in clinical trials.

If breast cancer spreads to other parts of the body, your healthcare providers still treat it like breast cancer. For instance, breast cancer cells that move to the lungs cause breast cancer in the lungs not lung cancer. Metastatic breast cancer is more difficult to treat than cancer in only one part of the body.

You may feel stressed, depressed or anxious. A mental health counselor and support groups can help.

Treating Stage 0 Colon Cancer

Since stage 0 colon cancers have not grown beyond the inner lining of the colon, surgery to take out the cancer is often the only treatment needed. In most cases this can be done by removing the polyp or taking out the area with cancer through a colonoscope . Removing part of the colon may be needed if a cancer is too big to be removed by local excision.

Don’t Miss: Is Stage 2 Breast Cancer Bad

What Is Stage 4 Breast Cancer

Also known as metastatic breast cancer, the cancer in this stage has spread beyond the breast, underarm and internal mammary lymph nodes to other parts of the body near to or distant from the breast. The cancer has spread elsewhere in the body. The affected areas may include the bones, brain, lungs or liver and more than one part of the body may be involved.

At stage 4, TNM designations help describe the extent of the disease. Higher numbers indicate more extensive disease. Most commonly, stage 4 breast cancer is described as:,

• T: T1, T2, T3 or T4 depends on the size and/or extent of the primary tumor.
• N1: Cancer has spread to the lymph nodes.
• M1: The disease has spread to other sites in the body.

Treatment For Early Stage Breast Cancer

If you are diagnosed with early stage breast cancer, the aim of treatment is to remove the breast cancer and any other cancer cells that remain in the breast, armpit or other parts of the body but cannot be detected.

Treatment for early stage breast cancer can vary from person to person. The stage of your breast cancer is an important factor when making decisions about treatment. However, the most suitable treatment for you also depends on other factors, such as where the cancer is in the breast, the cancers grade, and whether the cancer is hormone receptor-positive, HER2 positive or triple-negative. Your doctor will also consider your age, general health and preferences.

Treatment for early breast cancer may involve:

Usually more than one treatment is used. Treatment may be given in different orders and combinations. Learn more about different treatment options here.

Also Check: What Is Stage 2 Cancer Of The Breast

Stage Zero Breast Cancer: Whats The Optimal Treatment For Dcis

Before the advent of routine mammography, DCIS was rarely detected. But today, DCIS accounts for 20% of breast cancer diagnoses and would be the fifth most common cancer in women if classified independently.

Often called stage zero breast cancer, DCIS growths are confined to the inside of the breasts milk ducts, and many never develop into invasive cancers. Several treatment options are available, and opinions about the optimal treatment for DCIS vary widely among doctors.

A new study from researchers at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons may help women and their physicians narrow down the treatment choices.

DCIS is considered a pre-invasive cancer, but the current standard of care is to treat it like an early-stage invasive breast cancer, says Apar Gupta, MD, assistant professor of radiation oncology at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons and lead author of the study.

However, not all treatments for invasive breast cancer may be optimal for DCIS, Gupta says. His study suggests that in most cases of DCIS, the side effects of hormone therapy may outweigh its benefits.

The CUIMC Newsroom spoke with Gupta to learn how the studys findings can help providers and their patients navigate treatment for DCIS. Below are excerpts from the conversation:

Why is DCIS treatment controversial?

How does your study help women make a decision about treatment after lumpectomy?

Is there a role for hormone therapy?

Types Of Stage 1 And 2 Breast Cancer

The most common types of invasive breast cancers are named after the area of the breast where they begin. Types of early breast cancers include:

• Invasive ductal carcinoma IDC means that the cancer originated in the milk ducts of the breast, and has spread into the surrounding breast tissue. IDC is the most common type of breast cancer, accounting for 80% of all breast cancers.
• Invasive lobular carcinoma ILC means that the cancer originated in the milk-producing lobules of the breast, and has spread into the surrounding breast tissue. ILC is the second most common type of breast cancer, and accounts for 10% of breast cancers.
• There are also other less common forms of invasive breast cancer, such as inflammatory breast cancer and Pagets disease of the nipple. For more information on the various types of invasive breast cancer, including the less common forms, please visit Types of Breast Cancer page.

Don’t Miss: What Is The Prognosis For Stage 4 Breast Cancer

How Is Hormone Therapy Used To Treat Breast Cancer

There are three main ways that hormone therapy is used to treat hormone-sensitive breast cancer:

Adjuvant therapy for early-stage breast cancer:Tamoxifen is FDA approved for adjuvant hormone treatment of premenopausal and postmenopausal women with ER-positive early-stage breast cancer, and the aromatase inhibitorsanastrozole, letrozole, and exemestane are approved for this use in postmenopausal women.

Research has shown that women who receive at least 5 years of adjuvant therapy with tamoxifen after having surgery for early-stage ER-positive breast cancer have reduced risks of breast cancer recurrence, including a new breast cancer in the other breast, and reduced risk of death at 15 years .

Until recently, most women who received adjuvant hormone therapy to reduce the chance of a breast cancer recurrence took tamoxifen every day for 5 years. However, with the introduction of newer hormone therapies , some of which have been compared with tamoxifen in clinical trials, additional approaches to hormone therapy have become common .

Some premenopausal women with early-stage ER-positive breast cancer may have ovarian suppression plus an aromatase inhibitor, which was found to have higher rates of freedom from recurrence than ovarian suppression plus tamoxifen or tamoxifen alone .

Men with early-stage ER-positive breast cancer who receive adjuvant therapy are usually treated first with tamoxifen. Those treated with an aromatase inhibitor usually also take a GnRH agonist.

Blood Tests For Tumor Markers

In some cases, blood tests for tumor markers may be used to help monitor metastatic breast cancer.

For example, you may have blood tests every few months for cancer antigen 15-3 or cancer antigen 27.29 . These tests are similar. Health care providers usually check one, but not both of these blood tests.

Whether the tumor marker test score rises or falls over time may give some information on tumor response to a drug or tumor spread.

Tumor marker tests are not helpful in every case. Some people with rising tumor marker levels dont have tumor growth, and some people with tumor growth have normal or unchanged tumor marker levels.

Health care providers dont make treatment decisions based on serum tumor marker testing alone. They may combine findings from a tumor marker test with information on symptoms and findings from imaging tests . This combined information can help your health care providers understand if a treatment is working well for your cancer.

Talk with your health care provider about whether tumor marker testing is right for you.

Read Also: How Breast Cancer Affects The Body