cancer cells
breast cancer is divided into five stages. Steps 0-2 are considered "early" stage 3 considers "advanced" and stage 4 "more afternoon. "staging categories are important in predicting prognosis and determining future optimal treatment recommendations.
Stage 0 is carcinoma ductal carcinoma in situ or ductal carcinoma in situ. Breast cancer arises from cells that line the milk ducts. When cancer cells are still contained in duct is diagnosed as ductal carcinoma in situ. This can be determined by a pathologist examine the tissue microscopically. Usually when the DCIS lesion is small, there is no reason to suspect that outside the spread of breast cancer.
Phase 1 is invasive or infiltrating cancer. Here, cancer cells have broken the wall of the duct and outside the duct as well. In this case, physicians must determine whether the cancer has spread to lymph nodes. Stage 1 breast cancer must be equal to or less than 2 cm in the invasive component, and have not spread to lymph nodes. Often, the tissue removed during surgery ductal carcinoma in situ contain more invasive cancer. However, only the dimensions of the Earl of invasive cancer. If the patient needs to have multiple surgeries and invasive cancer is more than one operation, usually the dimensions are added together to arrive at final size.
Step 2 includes two sub-categories. At stage 2A, the invasive cancer can be 2 cm or less and has spread to the axilla (underarm) lymph node (s), ie with positive nodes (s). Moreover, invasive cancer may be as large as 5 cm but has not spread to lymph nodes, ie node-negative. In step 2B, invasive cancer is between 2 cm and 5 cm and has spread to lymph nodes. Here, cancer May even greater degree of 5 cm, if it has not spread to lymph nodes.
Step 3 includes invasive cancer by more than 5 cm, which has spread to lymph nodes. In addition, cancer of any size that involves the lymph nodes, axillary strongly to the point that these nodes are large and are glued or attached to other structures in the axilla (armpit) are at this point. Extension of tumor to lymph nodes above or below the clavicle bone or lymph nodes under the sternum (breast bone), also falls into this category. Moreover, muscles, if the cancer is any size attached to the chest wall (chest and / or ribs), is described as step 3. Inflammatory breast in breast skin is red and swollen, is classified at this stage, whatever their size.
Step 4 is an invasive cancer is outside the breast and axillary lymph nodes, or "metastasized" to remote sites. At this stage there is the size of primary breast cancer is. Nor well axillary / clavicle and lymph nodes breast cancer have bone or not. The most common sites for metastatic breast cancer are the bones and liver, followed by the lungs and brain. Test standard include bone scan and CT scan of the chest, abdomen, and pelvis. More recently, PET is often looking for the spread of cancer. Sometimes, an MRI or CT is also useful.