What Does Stage 3 Breast Cancer Mean

Staging And Grading Of Breast Cancer

Knowing the stage and grade of the cancer helps your doctors plan the best treatment for you.

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Your specialist doctor needs certain information about the cancer to advise you on the best treatment for you. This includes:

• the stage of the cancer
• the grade of the cancer
• whether the cancer has receptors for hormones or a protein called HER2.

This information comes from the results of all the tests you have had, including:

• the biopsy, when the tissue was examined
• other tests that were done on the cells.

Your specialist doctor and nurse will talk to you about this. They will explain how it helps you and your doctor decide on your treatment plan.

We understand that waiting to know the stage and grade of your cancer can be a worrying time. Were here if you need someone to talk to. You can:

What Is A Breast Cancers Grade

Cancer cells are given a grade when they are removed from the breast and checked in the lab. The grade is based on how much the cancer cells look like normal cells. The grade is used to help predict your outcome and to help figure out what treatments might work best.

A lower grade number usually means the cancer is slower-growing and less likely to spread.

A higher number means a faster-growing cancer thats more likely to spread.

What Is Stage Iii

In this stage, I tell my patients the real war against the cancer begins, Cruz said. Spreading is much more advanced.

According to Cruz, stage III is unique in that it has three subcategories: IIIA, IIIB and IIIC.

IIIA has tumors all larger than five millimeters and has spread to lymph nodes. Cruz said the higher number of lymph nodes with cancer cells, the more advanced it is.

In stage IIIB, the tumor has spread to the chest wall and skin of the breast. In many cases, this spreading can result in swelling or ulcers. The cancer cells have also spread to nine lymph nodes.

There is advanced spreading in stage IIIC: the cancer has spread to the chest wall, skin of the breast, 10 or more lymph nodes and the collarbone.

In stage III, yes there is advanced spreading. Yes it is harder to treat, but not untreatable, Cruz said. Thats what we tell our patients, although the spreading is scary, we can still fight it.

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Outlook For People With Stage 3 Breast Cancer

Its natural to want to know your outlook, but statistics dont tell the whole story. Your breast cancer type, overall health, and many more factors beyond your control may affect treatment outcomes.

Establishing open communication with your treatment team can help you best assess where you are in your cancer journey.

Support groups can be a great source of comfort as you navigate your diagnosis through your treatment and beyond. Your doctors office or hospital can offer some suggestions and resources in your area.

Age At The Time Of Diagnosis Affects Breast Cancer Survival Rates

It has always been known that curiously, young women have a poorer prognosis than older ones

Indeed, one cohort study examined 4,453 women with breast cancer between 1961 and 1991 who were all treated at the same center.

This study found that both ends of the age spectrum fared less well. So, women under the age of 40 years at diagnosis and those over 80 years had a statistically poorer prognosis.

However, for younger women, this may be due to the fact that they often present with higher-grade tumors that tend to be more aggressive and less likely to be hormone receptor-positive. This means that breast cancer may not respond as well to treatment.

So, it is important to bear in mind other factors discussed in this post, such as stage, grade and hormone receptor status play an important role in prognosis.

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How To Find Support

You may be overwhelmed with organizations offering support, or you may be confused as to how to enroll or whether youre eligible. Though some of these support options happen outside of your care teams facility, speak openly with them about what kind of support you need and any questions to start.

Stay connected with your care team: They know you and they know the battle ahead. They also know which resources have been helpful for other patients, and which resources they may be able to offer. They know that factors such as stress, nutrition and sleeping problems affect your health. Theyre there to help you get what you need.

Lean on friends and family: Interactions with friends and family may be different when a cancer diagnosis is involved. Odds are that your support system wants to help, but theyll know the best ways to help if you tell them yourself. Dont be afraid to ask for what you need, whether its company on the ride to an appointment or help with household chores.

Look for support groups: If you have stage 3 cancer, youre joining a host of others who have walked a similar path. Youre not alone. Participating in a support group may help you feel more connected and understood. Both the American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute have tools to help you find resources for cancer support in your area.

T Categories For Breast Cancer

T followed by a number from 0 to 4 describes the main tumor’s size and if it has spread to the skin or to the chest wall under the breast. Higher T numbers mean a larger tumor and/or wider spread to tissues near the breast.

TX: Primary tumor cannot be assessed.

T0: No evidence of primary tumor.

Tis: Carcinoma in situ

T1 : Tumor is 2 cm or less across.

T2: Tumor is more than 2 cm but not more than 5 cm across.

T3: Tumor is more than 5 cm across.

T4 : Tumor of any size growing into the chest wall or skin. This includes inflammatory breast cancer.

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Drug Treatment Before Surgery

You might have chemotherapy as a first treatment to shrink the cancer down.

You might have hormone therapy first if your cancer cells have hormone receptors. But you usually only have this if chemotherapy isnt suitable.

If your cancer cells have particular proteins called HER2 receptors you might also have a targeted cancer drug called trastuzumab .

These treatments might shrink the tumour enough to allow your surgeon to remove just the area of cancer. This is called breast conserving surgery or a wide local excision.

If the cancer doesnt shrink enough, you need to have the whole breast removed . You may be able to have a new breast made . Do speak to your surgeon about this.

Before your surgery the lymph nodes in the armpit are checked for cancer cells.

You usually have radiotherapy to the breast after surgery.

What Is Stage Iii Breast Cancer

In stage III breast cancer, the cancer has spread further into the breast or the tumor is a larger size than earlier stages. It is divided into three subcategories.

Stage IIIA is based on one of the following:

• With or without a tumor in the breast, cancer is found in four to nine nearby lymph nodes.
• A breast tumor is larger than 50 millimeters, and the cancer has spread to between one and three nearby lymph nodes.

In stage IIIB, a tumor has spread to the chest wall behind the breast. In addition, these factors contribute to assigning this stage:

• Cancer may also have spread to the skin, causing swelling or inflammation.
• It may have broken through the skin, causing an ulcerated area or wound.
• It may have spread to as many as nine underarm lymph nodes or to nodes near the breastbone.

In stage IIIC, there may be a tumor of any size in the breast, or no tumor present at all. But either way, the cancer has spread to one of the following places:

• ten or more underarm lymph nodes
• lymph nodes near the collarbone
• some underarm lymph nodes and lymph nodes near the breastbone
• the skin

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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.

Treatment For Stage 1 Breast Cancer

Doctors can offer a variety of treatment options for stage 1 breast cancer, although surgery is the primary treatment.

Surgery

A lumpectomy or mastectomy are both viable surgical options for people with stage 1 breast cancer. A doctor will decide what surgery is most appropriate depending on the location of the primary tumor, how large it is, the size of the breast, family history, genetics, and the persons preference.

Radiation therapy

Radiation therapy is a standard treatment for stage 1 breast cancer. However, a doctor may not recommend radiation therapy for people over 70 years old, particularly if hormone therapy is suitable.

Hormone therapy

If the breast cancer is ER+ or PR+, hormone therapy may be effective. Hormone therapy works by preventing the growth of estrogen, which helps cancer grow. Hormone therapy can reach cancer cells in the breast as well as other areas of the body and reduces the risk of the cancer coming back.

Chemotherapy

Before recommending chemotherapy, a doctor will test to see whether the cancer is hormone receptive.

If the test results show that the cancer is not receptive to estrogen and progesterone or to another protein called human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 , it is known as triple-negative breast cancer .

Hormone therapy is ineffective against this cancer type, and people who have TNBC will usually need chemotherapy.

Stage 2A breast cancer is an invasive cancer where:

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How Does Tumor Grade Affect A Patients Treatment Options

Doctors use tumor grade and other factors, such as cancer stage and a patients age and general health, to develop a treatment plan and to determine a patients prognosis . Generally, a lower grade indicates a better prognosis. A higher-grade cancer may grow and spread more quickly and may require immediate or more aggressive treatment.

The importance of tumor grade in planning treatment and determining a patients prognosis is greater for certain types of cancer, such as soft tissue sarcoma, primary brain tumors, and breast and prostate cancer.

Patients should talk with their doctor for more information about tumor grade and how it relates to their treatment and prognosis.

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What Does It Mean To Have Stage 2 Breast Cancer

Stage 2 means the breast cancer is growing, but it is still contained in the breast or growth has only extended to the nearby lymph nodes.

This stage is divided into groups: Stage 2A and Stage 2B. The difference is determined by the size of the tumor and whether the breast cancer has spread to the lymph nodes.

For Stage 2 breast cancer, chemotherapy is usually done first, followed by surgery and radiation therapy.

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What Are Breast Cancer Stages

The stage of a cancer describes the size of the cancer and how far it has spread.

Your breast cancer may be described as stage 1, stage 2, stage 3 or stage 4.

An early form of breast cancer called DCIS is sometimes referred to as stage 0 breast cancer.

The stage takes into account:

• The size of the cancer
• Whether the lymph nodes are affected
• If the cancer has spread to other parts of the body

The stage of your cancer may not be fully known until after you have had surgery.

More Information About The Tnm Staging System

The T category describes the original tumor:

• TX means the tumor can’t be assessed.
• T0 means there isn’t any evidence of the primary tumor.
• Tis means the cancer is “in situ” .
• T1, T2, T3, T4: These numbers are based on the size of the tumor and the extent to which it has grown into neighboring breast tissue. The higher the T number, the larger the tumor and/or the more it may have grown into the breast tissue.

The N category describes whether or not the cancer has reached nearby lymph nodes:

• NX means the nearby lymph nodes can’t be assessed, for example, if they were previously removed.
• N0 means nearby lymph nodes do not contain cancer.
• N1, N2, N3: These numbers are based on the number of lymph nodes involved and how much cancer is found in them. The higher the N number, the greater the extent of the lymph node involvement.

The M category tells whether or not there is evidence that the cancer has traveled to other parts of the body:

• MX means metastasis can’t be assessed.
• M0 means there is no distant metastasis.
• M1 means that distant metastasis is present.

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Stage 3 Diagnostic Criteria

While we talk about stage 3 cancers as one monstrous thing, their diagnosis differs drastically based on cancer type. Generally, a stage 3 cancer diagnosis requires one or more of three features:

• Tumor growth beyond a specific size
• Spread to a specific set of nearby lymph nodes
• Extension of the tumor into nearby structures

Once diagnosed, a cancer stage never changes. Even if the doctor re-stages the cancer diagnosis, or it recurs , they keep the initial staging diagnosis.

The doctor will add the new staging diagnosis to the initial stage and differentiate it with letterslike c for clinical, p for pathological , or after treatments .

Some stage 3 cancers are subdivided to give a more precise classification. These sub-stages will differ based on the specific cancerous organ. For example, stage 3 breast cancer has three subcategories:

• The tumor is smaller than 5 centimeters but has spread to 4-9 nodes.
• The tumor is larger than 5 cm and has spread to 1 to 9 nodes.

3B: The tumor is any size but has invaded the chest wall or breast skin and is swollen, inflamed, or has ulcers. It may have also invaded up to 9 nearby nodes

3C: The tumor can be any size but has spread to either: 10 or more lymph nodes, nodes near the collar bones, or lymph nodes near the underarm and the breast bone

Breast Cancer Staging Guidelines

The TNM system is the most widely used cancer staging system and looks at the following cancer characteristics:

• Tumor The size of the tumor and whether it has grown into nearby tissue.
• Node Whether the cancer has spread to nearby lymph nodes. And if so, how many.
• Metastasis Indicates whether the cancer has spread to distant organs, like the lungs or liver.

But when it comes to breast cancer staging, the TNM system was expanded to include additional cancer characteristics, including:

• Estrogen-receptor status or progesterone-receptor status Whether the cancer has estrogen or progesterone receptors. A positive status means the cancer can use either hormone to grow.
• HER2 status Whether the cancer produces HER2, a protein that promotes the growth of cancer cells.
• Grade Indicates how much the cancer cells look like healthy cells.
• Oncotype DX recurrence score Indicates how likely a group of genes may respond to treatment, depending on ER, PR and HER2 status.

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Cancer Cure And All Clear

Many people who have cancer want to know if theyre cured. You may hear words like cure and all clear in the media.

Cured means theres no chance of the breast cancer coming back. However, its not possible to be sure that breast cancer will never come back. Treatment for breast cancer will be successful for most people, and the risk of recurrence gets less as time goes on. Recurrence, unfortunately, can happen even many years after treatment, so no one can say with certainty that youre definitely cured.

All clear, or in remission which is another term you may have heard used, means theres no obvious sign of cancer at the moment.

If your breast cancer has spread to other parts of your body this will affect your prognosis. Secondary breast cancer can be treated, sometimes for many years, but not cured. Find out more about secondary breast cancer.

In order to be as clear as possible, your treatment team is more likely to talk about your chances of survival over a period of time or the possibility of remaining free of breast cancer in the future.