From Tumor Characteristics to a Persons Background
Over a quarter of a million people are diagnosed withbreast cancerannually.
Multiple factors determine the prognosis or outlook for a breast cancer diagnosis.
Their terminology is used when citing these statistics.
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Female breast cancer is that reported in a person assigned female at birth.
Male breast cancer is that reported in a person assigned male at birth.
Stages range from 1 to 4.
The higher the stage, the more deadly the cancer is.
However, this tumor has the potential to become invasive if it isn’t removed and treated.
It is highly curable.
The more cancer has spread, the higher the cancer is staged and the worse the prognosis.
Tumor Size
The tumor size plays a big role in the prognosis of breast cancer.
The grade is a way to measure how wild the cells in the tumor sample look.
The more normal the cells look, the lower the grade and the better the prognosis.
Higher-grade tumors have a worse prognosis.
New breast cancer drugs that take advantage of these biomarkers have revolutionized breast cancer treatment.
Three major biomarkers play an essential role in breast cancer prognosis and treatment.
These hormone receptors send signals to the cancer cells to grow in the presence of hormones.
Cancer cells with hormone receptors are typically slow growing and respond well totreatments that block the hormone signals.
Hormone receptor-negative cancers have a worse prognosis because they do not respond to hormone therapies.
They also typically grow faster than hormone receptor-positive cancers and return quickly after treatment.
Hormone receptor-positive breast cancers can also come back but usually many years after treatment.
HER2 is a growth-promoting protein expressed by some breast cancers.
These breast cancer gene expression tests are a bang out of personalized medicine.
Gene expression tests include Oncotype DX, MammaPrint, and Prosigna.
They are most useful for early stage cancers.
If the cancer is more likely to return, the healthcare provider may recommend chemotherapy to reduce that risk.
Localized female breast cancer is still contained within the breast.
Regional breast cancer may have spread to other chest tissues or local lymph nodes.
Distant breast cancers may have spread to other organs like the lungs or bones.
Survival rates are worse for cancers that have spread.
Survival statistics for people diagnosed with female breast cancer also show a racial disparity.
Multiple factors are at play in this disparity.
Black people are also subject to structural racism and systematic discrimination and bias.
A lack of access means their cancer is often diagnosed at more advanced stages, with a poorer prognosis.
Prognosis Based on Age
Middle-aged and older people are the most commonly diagnosed with female breast cancer.
People who are older at diagnosis are more likely to die than younger people.
The median age at death from breast cancer is 70.
Summary
Many factors affect breast cancer prognosis, outlook, and survival rate.
These factors include:
Invasive breast cancers have a worse outlook than those that are noninvasive.
People with larger tumors tend to fare worse than those with smaller tumors.
Tumors with a higher grade are typically faster growing and more likely to spread.
Tumors with hormone receptors are more treatable.
Those with HER2 are more aggressive, though they also have more treatment options.
Tumors with favorable genetic profiles have better outcomes.
They need less aggressive treatment and are less likely to recur.
Cancers stage determines prognosisthe five-year relative survival rate for breast cancer drops in more advanced cancer.
A racial disparity is seen with female breast cancer.
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American Cancer Society.Ductal carcinoma in situ.
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American Cancer Society.Cancer staging.
American Cancer Society.Breast cancer grade.
American Cancer Society.Breast cancer hormone receptor status.
American Cancer Society.Understanding your pathology report: breast cancer.
Canadian Cancer Society.Prognosis and survival for breast cancer.
American Cancer Society.More Black women die from breast cancer than any other cancer.
National Cancer Institute.SEER explorer.
American Cancer Society.Triple-negative breast cancer.
American Cancer Society.Treatment of breast cancer by stage.
