Table of Contents:
            STAGE EXPLANATION
            Stages of breast cancer
            Carcinoma in situ (DCIS)
            Stage I
            Stage II
            Stage III
            Stage IV
            Inflammatory breast cancer
            Recurrent

Stage Explanation:

Stages of breast cancer

Once breast cancer has been found, more tests will be done to find out if the cancer has spread from the breast to other parts of the body. This is called staging. To plan treatment, a doctor needs to know the stage of the disease. The following stages are used for breast cancer.

Carcinoma in situ (DCIS, LCIS)

About 15% to 20% of breast cancers are very early cancers. They are sometimes called carcinoma in situ. There are two types of breast cancer in situ. One type is ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS; also known as intraductal carcinoma); the other type is lobular carcinoma in situ (LCIS). LCIS is not cancer, but for the purpose of classifying the disease, it is called breast cancer in situ, carcinoma in situ, or stage 0 breast cancer. Sometimes LCIS is found when a biopsy is done for another lump or abnormality found on the mammogram. Patients with this condition have a 25% chance of developing breast cancer in either breast in the next 25 years.

Stage I
       The cancer is no larger than 2 centimeters (about 1 inch) and has not spread outside the breast.

Stage II
       Any of the following may be true: The cancer is no larger than 2 centimeters but has spread to the lymph nodes under the arm (the axillary lymph nodes).

The cancer is between 2 and 5 centimeters (from 1 to 2 inches). The cancer may or may not have spread to the lymph nodes under the arm.

The cancer is larger than 5 centimeters (larger than 2 inches) but has not spread to the lymph nodes under the arm.

Stage III

Stage III is divided into stages IIIA and IIIB.

Stage IIIA is defined by either of the following: The cancer is smaller than 5 centimeters and has spread to the lymph nodes under the arm, and the lymph nodes are attached to each other or to other structures.

The cancer is larger than 5 centimeters and has spread to the lymph nodes under the arm.

Stage IIIB is defined by either of the following: The cancer has spread to tissues near the breast (skin or chest wall, including the ribs and the muscles in the chest).

The cancer has spread to lymph nodes inside the chest wall along the breast bone.

Stage IV

The cancer has spread to other organs of the body, most often the bones, lungs, liver, or brain. Or, tumor has spread locally to the skin and lymph nodes inside the neck, near the collarbone.

Inflammatory breast cancer

Inflammatory breast cancer is a special class of breast cancer that is rare. The breast looks as if it is inflamed because of its red appearance and warmth. The skin may show signs of ridges and wheals or it may have a pitted appearance. Inflammatory breast cancer tends to spread quickly.

Recurrent

Recurrent disease means that the cancer has come back (recurred) after it has been treated. It may come back in the breast, in the soft tissues of the chest (the chest wall), or in another part of the body.

Date Last Modified: 05/1999