How Often Does Stage 1 Breast Cancer Come Back After Treatment
If stage 1 cancer is treated comprehensively, it rarely comes back. A new, unrelated breast cancer is more likely to emerge after stage 1 breast cancer is treated than a recurrence. Your healthcare provider will recommend a surveillance schedule for you so that new breast cancer or a recurrence can be identified and treated as quickly as possible.
Survival Of Breast Cancer Based On Stage
Statistics are given below for the overall survival rates for breast cancer based on certain stages of disease development.
I made this page many years ago, when there was nothing like this data available on the internet. Recently this page has been up-dated with the most recent statistics that we can find. Prognosis will be even better than the numbers here suggest because modern targeted treatments have improved a lot.
Breast cancer staging is determined by many factors and these include:-
- The presence and size of a tumor
- Whether the tumor is node negative or positive, this means whether lymph nodes are involved or not
- If the cancer has metastasized beyond the breast
If breast cancer is diagnosed and it is determined that there is no metastasis to the lymph nodes then the chances of survival are extremely good.
Once breast cancer has spread to the lymph nodes the mode of treatment tends to shift to the chemotherapy medicines, and the odds of survival are somewhat lower.
An updated page on breast cancer survival rates. A new page on Breast cancer TNM stage.
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.
You May Like: Define Stage 3 Cancer
Lifetime Risk Of Breast Cancer Worldwide
Women who live in developed countries tend to have a higher lifetime risk of breast cancer than women who live in developing countries .
Although we dont know all the reasons for these differences, lifestyle and reproductive factors likely play a large role .
Low screening rates and incomplete reporting can make rates of breast cancer in developing countries look lower than they truly are and may also explain some of these differences.
What Are The Stages Of Cancer In The Seer Database
The SEER database, however, does not group cancers by AJCC TNM stages . Instead, it groups cancers into localized, regional, and distant stages: Localized: There is no sign that the cancer has spread outside of the breast. Regional: The cancer has spread outside the breast to nearby structures or lymph nodes.
Don’t Miss: Stage 3 A Cancer
Breast Cancer Survival By Age
Five-year survival for female breast cancer shows an unusual pattern with age: survival gradually increases from 85% in women aged 15-39 and peaks at 92% in 60-69 year olds survival falls thereafter, reaching its lowest point of 70% in 80-99 year-olds for patients diagnosed with breast cancer in England during 2009-2013.
Breast Cancer , Five-Year Net Survival by Age, Women, England, 2009-2013
Will I Die Of Breast Cancer
This is a difficult question to answer early in your cancer care but it is still worth asking. Many people just diagnosed with cancer have no idea how much of a risk to their life their unique situation poses. Most breast cancers carry a low risk of recurrence, especially early-stage cancers. The answer is usually reassuring.
Recommended Reading: What Does Her2 Negative Mean In Breast Cancer
What This Means For You
If youve been diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer, you and your doctors will talk about a surgical approach that makes the most sense for you and your unique situation. You may consider a number of factors, including:
- the characteristics of the breast cancer
- your age
- any other health conditions you might have
- your preferences
- how close you are to treatment facilities
- your personal risk of recurrence and your concern about the cancer coming back
- your reconstruction options and preferences
At Breastcancer.org, we support everyones right to make treatment decisions based on the characteristics of the cancer theyve been diagnosed with, their medical history, their risk of recurrence or a new breast cancer, and their personal preferences. But its very important to make sure you understand all the pros and cons of any treatment or procedure youre considering, including differences in survival rates.
Read more about Mastectomy vs. Lumpectomy.
To discuss the risks and benefits of lumpectomy or mastectomy with others, join the Breastcancer.org Discussion Board forum Surgery – Before, During, and After.
Coping With A Diagnosis Of Dcis
Being told you have DCIS can be a difficult and worrying time. Everyone reacts differently to their diagnosis and have their own way of coping.
Although DCIS is an early form of breast cancer with a very good prognosis, people understandably may feel very anxious and frightened by the diagnosis. People can often struggle to come to terms with being offered treatments such as a mastectomy, at the same time as being told their DCIS may never do them any harm.
Some people are reluctant to say theyre anxious about a diagnosis of DCIS because they worry others will see it as less important than other types of breast cancer. Because of this they might feel less able to ask for support. But there are people who can support you so dont be afraid to ask for help if you need it. By letting other people know how you feel, particularly your family and friends, they can be more supportive.
Some people find it helpful to discuss their feelings and concerns with their breast care nurse or specialist. If youd like to talk through your feelings and concerns in more depth over a period of time, a counsellor or psychologist may be more appropriate. Your breast care nurse, specialist or GP can arrange this.
Find out more about coping emotionally with breast cancer.
If you want to talk you can also call our Helpline on 0808 800 6000.
You May Like: Chemotherapy Cycles For Breast Cancer
Considering Complementary And Alternative Methods
You may hear about alternative or complementary methods that your doctor hasnt mentioned to treat your cancer or relieve symptoms. These methods can include vitamins, herbs, and special diets, or other methods such as acupuncture or massage, to name a few.
Complementary methods refer to treatments that are used along with your regular medical care. Alternative treatments are used instead of a doctors medical treatment. Although some of these methods might be helpful in relieving symptoms or helping you feel better, many have not been proven to work. Some might even be harmful.
Be sure to talk to your cancer care team about any method you are thinking about using. They can help you learn what is known about the method, which can help you make an informed decision.
What Is The Prognosis After Recurrence
Many patients with a recurrence of breast cancer can be successfully treated, often with methods other than radiation if radiation was used in the initial treatment. For patients treated initially for invasive breast cancer, five percent to 10 percent will be found to have distant metastases at the time of discovery of the breast recurrence. The same proportion will have recurrences that are too extensive to be operated on. While in these cases the patient’s disease can often be managed over a period of years, the goals of treatment change from obtaining a cure to preventing further progression or managing symptoms. Five-year cure rates for patients with relapse after breast conservation therapy are approximately 60 percent to 75 percent if the relapse is confined to the breast and a mastectomy is then performed.
For patients treated initially for DCIS, about one-half of recurrences are invasive and one-half noninvasive DCIS. Long-term control rates following recurrence after initial breast conservation therapy have been high, often over 90 percent.
Don’t Miss: Low Grade Breast Cancer Prognosis
What Are Some Of The Possible Risks Or Complications
Minor complications include:
- Slight swelling of the breast during radiotherapy. This usually goes away within six to 12 months.
- The skin becomes darker during the course of radiotherapy, similar to tanning from the sun. In most cases, this also fades gradually over six to 12 months.
- Most women will have aches or pains from time to time in the treated breast or the muscles surrounding the breast, even years after treatment. The reason why this happens is not clear however, these pains are harmless, although annoying. They are NOT a sign that the cancer is reappearing.
- Rarely, patients may develop a rib fracture years following treatment. This occurs in less than one percent of patients treated by modern approaches. These heal slowly by themselves.
More serious complications include:
Overall Breast Cancer Survival Rate For All Stages Of Breast Cancer
The overall 5 year survival rate for women with breast cancer was 89.7%. That is 89.7 out of 100 women were still alive 5 years after diagnosis, regardless of the stage of the cancer. This figure was taken from the SEERS statistics between the years of 2006 and 2012, so could well be even higher now.
Recommended Reading: Is Breast Cancer Curable At Stage 3
Help Getting Through Cancer Treatment
People with cancer need support and information, no matter what stage of illness they may be in. Knowing all of your options and finding the resources you need will help you make informed decisions about your care.
Whether you are thinking about treatment, getting treatment, or not being treated at all, you can still get supportive care to help with pain or other symptoms. Communicating with your cancer care team is important so you understand your diagnosis, what treatment is recommended, and ways to maintain or improve your quality of life.
Different types of programs and support services may be helpful, and can be an important part of your care. These might include nursing or social work services, financial aid, nutritional advice, rehab, or spiritual help.
The American Cancer Society also has programs and services including rides to treatment, lodging, and more to help you get through treatment. Call our National Cancer Information Center at 1-800-227-2345 and speak with one of our trained specialists.
What Is Inflammatory Breast Cancer
Inflammatory breast cancer is a highly aggressive disease that progresses very quickly, often over the course of days or weeks. Cancer cells block lymph vessels in the skin of the breast. As a result, the breast begins to look swollen and red. Many times, this may appear like an infection. In contrast to other breast cancers, IBC often does not cause a lump and may not show up on a mammogram. For these reasons, IBC can be much harder to diagnose than other breast cancers.
Lumps are not typically an early symptom of IBC because the cancer cells tend to grow in layers. These layers, or sheets of tissue, are sometimes called nests. This is different from most breast cancers, as the cancer cells may not create a mass of tissue .
Recommended Reading: 3a Cancer
What Tumor Factors Threaten My Life More
There are important tumor biology factors not well reflected in survival statistics by breast cancer stage. Below we list a few important factors that carry a higher risk to life beyond just the stage of cancer. You must ask your surgeon or medical oncologist to explain your receptor status and give you a copy of your biopsy pathology report.
Triple Negative Receptor breast cancer
Triple negative breast cancer is considered a more aggressive breast cancer. Invariably it does require chemotherapy. If you have triple negative breast cancer the risk of dying is higher than the standard statistics usually quoted for a particular stage of breast cancer . Learn more about Triple Negative Breast Cancer with our video lesson
HER2-Positive breast cancer
HER2-positive breast cancers are also more aggressive tumors. But the good news is that we now have incredibly effective, targeted chemotherapy and immunotherapy for HER2-positive cancers. Our video lesson covers HER2-Positive Breast Cancer in more detail .
Breast Cancer at a Young Age
Women younger than 40 have a higher chance of being diagnosed with a more advanced stage breast cancer. Also, the specific cancer type younger women develop has a higher chance of being more aggressive . As a result, age is a relative risk factor for survival.
Untreated breast cancer
Teaching everyone to be an expert in their own breast cancer care.
What Affects Prognosis
There are a number of factors that affect breast cancer prognosis. These include:
- the type of breast cancer
- the grade of the breast cancer
- the size of the breast cancer
For more information see our booklet Understanding your pathology results or visit our pathology report page.
Other factors that may affect your prognosis include your age, menopausal status , lifestyle factors and your general health.
All of these factors will be considered when estimating your prognosis and deciding what treatment youre offered.
You May Like: What Does Stage 3 Breast Cancer Mean
What Is A 5
A relative survival rate compares women with the same type and stage of breast cancer to women in the overall population.For example, if the 5-year relative survival rate for a specific stage of breast cancer is 90%, it means that women who have that cancer are, on average, about 90% as likely as women who dont have that cancer to live for at least 5 years after being diagnosed.
Her2+ Status Cancer Stage And Survival
The importance of HER2 status for survival will depend on how far the cancer has spread. If itâs only in the breast, then it wonât make much difference. Most women in the early stage of the disease do well because a surgeon can remove the tumor.
Itâs when a breast tumor grows and spreads to lymph nodes or farther away in the body that HER2 status becomes more important for treatment and survival. Thatâs because there are now drugs that target HER2, but these work only for cancers that are HER2+. A common drug for HER2+ breast cancer is trastuzumab , but there are others. Because there are more treatments, women with more advanced HER2+ breast cancers today will on average have better survival rates than those with more advanced HER2- breast cancers.
Show Sources
Recommended Reading: Breast Cancer Recurrence Symptoms Pain
What Is The Treatment For Metastatic Breast Cancer
Treatments include many of the same treatments as other stages of breast cancer:
- Chemotherapy
- Radiation therapy
- Hormone therapy For patients diagnosed with Stage IV breast cancer that is hormone receptor positive, hormonal therapy may be the first line of defense against the disease. As long as the drugs are keeping the cancer from progressing, the patient may be kept on the medication for some time. If scans show the progression of the cancer, the medical oncologist may switch to another form of hormonal therapy or possibly stop this therapy and pursue a different line of systemic treatment, such as chemotherapy or biologic targeted therapy.
- Biologic targeted therapy
- Breast surgery It is controversial whether surgery should be done on the breast in the presence of known metastatic disease. In most cases, however, the knowledge of metastasis is discovered after the breast cancer surgery and other treatment has been performed. The cancer returns as a distant recurrence.
Screening For Breast Cancer
Women aged between 50 and 74 are invited to access free screening mammograms every two years via the BreastScreen Australia Program.
Women aged 40-49 and 75 and over are also eligible to receive free mammograms, however they do not receive an invitation to attend.
It is recommended that women with a strong family history of breast or ovarian cancer, aged between 40 and 49 or over 75 discuss options with their GP, or contact BreastScreen Australia on 13 20 50.
Don’t Miss: Stage 3 Breast Cancer Aggressive
The Above Comprise Some Top Countries With The Best Treatment For Cancer In The World Despite The Number Of These Facilities Cancer Treatment Is Usually In Expensive And Long
About Me
I welcome you all to the RakSutka blog. My name is Rovie Bautista. I manage the information on this blog. This blog provides solutions to the many health-related problems women today face. This is important in todays world when people have less time to take care of their health and self-awareness.
Recent Articles
Questions About Research That Studies Survival After Each Type Of Surgery
A number of experts questioned recent studies that have suggested lumpectomy plus radiation offers better survival rates than mastectomy without radiation for early-stage breast cancer.
These experts wondered if the women in the studies who had lumpectomy plus radiation had smaller tumors or cancers that had not spread to the lymph nodes compared with women who had mastectomy. If this were true, the women who had lumpectomy plus radiation would be expected to have better outcomes because the cancers they were diagnosed with would be considered less aggressive.
The experts considered that mastectomy may be recommended for women who live in remote areas and would have to travel several hours to a facility to receive radiation therapy.
The experts also pointed out that mastectomy is more common in women with lower incomes. Having a lower income also is linked to other factors associated with worse breast cancer outcomes, including:
- having other health issues
- being diagnosed with breast cancer at a more advanced stage
- being less likely to have chemotherapy after surgery
So, the experts wanted to do a study that took into account all these factors that may affect survival rates and provide a clearer analysis of lumpectomy plus radiation compared with mastectomy outcomes.
Read Also: How Serious Is Stage 3 Breast Cancer