Breast cancer survival rate. Breast cancer is curable at any stage.

Every year the number of people suffering from oncological diseasesgrowing up. In women, breast cancer has a leading position. Everyone knows about insidiousness and danger to life of this disease. It is not surprising that in making such a diagnosis, both the patient and her family are primarily concerned with how much can be lived with this disease. So what does survival in breast cancer depend on?

Maximum detection occurs after 60 years, when women no longer have menstruation. But there is a cumulative effect of estrogen exposure, and also because the mechanisms for repairing cells that undergo genetic changes become increasingly ineffective as they age. This requires additional repair costs.

Do women with breast cancer have some common characteristics? More than 90% of tumors are sporadic, that is, they do not have a genetic basis that determines or predisposes them. Mutations appear in the epithelial tissue of the breast, and in some cases these mutations cause breast cancer. There is not always a clear risk factor. Another thing is that the crayfish are associated with genetics.

Factors affecting survival

The prognosis for breast cancer depends on a number of factors:

  • The number of lymph nodes affected by metastases. The more lymph nodes affected cancer cells, the worse the prognosis of the disease and the higher the probability of recurrence. If the lymph nodes are not affected, the ten-year survival rate is 75%, otherwise it is no more than 25%. With the defeat of no more than three lymph nodes ten-year survival of about 35%, but if there are more than four - this figure is not higher than 15%.
  • The size of the tumor. The more education becomes, the more its aggressiveness increases and the sooner the process of metastasis formation takes place.
  • Location of education.
  • The degree of germination of the tumor lymphatic and blood vessels.
  • The form of the disease.
  • The value of activity indicators of DNA synthesis.
  • The presence of metastases.
  • Treatment methods.
  • The intensity of division of altered cells (the level of Ki-67 nuclear antigen, the level of mitosine nuclear protein, and so on).
  • Indicators of the level of inhibitors (blockers) and plasminogen activators (a protein involved in the processes occurring in the cell: metastasis and invasion, and others).

The survival prognosis for breast cancer is much more favorable if hormonal sensitivity of the formation to drugs is observed (there are receptors for progesterone and estrogen on the surface of the malignant cells).

How many hereditary genetic causes? In these cases, there is a mutation that is inherited through the family. Gene, tumor causingis not always found. What is the death rate from this cancer? Overall survival rates with a 5-year diagnosis range from 85% to 90%. They can be extrapolated to all of Catalonia, since there are screening programs for early diagnosis throughout the territory. And specialized interdisciplinary teams, in all hospitals. This optimizes good results.

How many diagnoses arise from these population polls? Regular practice of mammography contributes to the fact that most of the detected tumors are in the initial stages. Before the involvement of the nodes of the armpit. The remaining 15% of women who did not survive five years after the diagnosis, suffer from metastases?

The presence of such factors has a negative impact on the survival rate for breast cancer:

  • The patient has a tumor marker Her2neu, indicating a high aggressiveness of the tumor. It is found in 20-30% of patients.
  • Age up to 35 years.


Breast cancer causes the patient to die when he creates a metastasis in a vital organ and that the tumor is not compatible with the function of the invading organ. They are rare, but they exist. There are three types: almost 70% of patients, those with a positive hormone receptor tumor, receive hormone therapy or conventional chemotherapy, or both. Also some new biological treatments. They get specific drugs  against this protein, which are monoclonal antibodies.

Everything can be treated with chemotherapy or biologics. Is it true that in many cases chemotherapy could have been avoided? My first research work has already touched on this problem, and it is still relevant. In women who have undergone surgery for breast cancer and those who have been removed, we want to avoid relapse and metastasis, but we will never have the opportunity to know individually which of them are intended for the relapse of their cancer, or who are not. We rely on statistics.

The forecast depending on the localization of the tumor

Placement of education in the breast tissue affects the prognosis of the disease, since the distribution and direction of metastases, as well as their growth rate, depends on this.

The most favorable prognosis is observed in the formations located in the outer quadrants of the mammary gland, since they can be detected at an early stage. In addition, this localization allows the use of surgical intervention.

We know that a woman who has a small tumor that is one centimeter in size, and her lymph nodes are clean, has a 10% risk of relapse after a few years. But at that moment we cannot know in which of them there is a cancer cell that escaped and would reach the bone marrow or lung or circulate through the blood.

If at the time we are treating them with chemotherapy, the risk is reduced to 6% or 7%. But we do not know which of them can benefit from this chemotherapy or who will not prevent relapse. To overcome this dilemma, if we wanted to offer maximum protection to these women, we had to be given 100% chemotherapy.

If the tumor is located in the medial and central parts of the breast, the prognosis is unfavorable, since such formations have a high level of metastasis.

Cancer survival depending on stage

It is customary to distinguish five stages of breast cancer, depending on the size of the tumor and the degree of lymph node involvement. The five-year prognosis of the disease is directly dependent on the stage of the disease.

Ways to predict the prognosis of women operated on who, in principle, does not have cancer. There are four platforms of this type in the hospitals of Catalonia. They are used to obtain a portion of a given woman’s tumor, to which a technology is applied that measures the expression of all these genes. The result allows us to better determine the risk of recurrence and determine in which cases the patient can save chemotherapy with more than reasonable reliability. Or in which cases it may have significant benefits.

In any case, we always demand the opinions of patients. There are those who, regardless of the outcome after applying these platforms, want to receive chemotherapy to reduce the risk of relapse. And there are results that go, do not want chemotherapy. That, we would not have done the test.

  • 0-1 stage. The size of the tumor does not exceed two centimeters, while cancer cells in the lymph nodes are absent. Survival in this case –70-95%.
  • Stage 2 The tumor is between two and five centimeters in size, the lymph nodes are not affected, or the size is no more than two centimeters, but there are cancer cells in 4-5 lymph nodes. Survival at this stage is 50-80%.
  • Stage 3 The tumor grows more than five centimeters, the lymph nodes are affected by cancer cells. Survival in this case is 10-50%.
  • Stage 4. Education can be any size. Present separated metastases. Survival rate - 0-10%

Static data on the ten-year survival of patients with breast cancer indicate that in patients at the 0-1 stage, it is 60-80%, at stage 2 - 40-60%, at stage 3 - 0-30%, at stage 4 - 0-5%.

Do you think traditional chemotherapy will be stopped? Perhaps then biological treatment or immunotherapy can replace it, because they are better tolerated. At the moment, it is an effective, healing procedure for many women, although it is feared.

Because of all the symbolism around the chest, the presence malignant tumor  in this place can undermine self-esteem. In this sense, mastologist Alice Francisco speaks about the importance of caring for feelings that appear after diagnosis. "Positive thinking works in the fight against the disease, it is a way to find the strength to fight."

Survival depending on the form of the disease

Breast cancer can take two forms:

  • Nodal, which may be limited and local-infiltrative.
  • Diffuse. It is edematous, lymphangitis and diffuse-infiltrative.

In the formation of infiltrative type, the prognosis of the disease is worse than in other cases. Most often, this form of cancer is diagnosed in young women and very rarely in elderly patients. Inflammatory forms of the disease (resuscitating, “crustacean” and mastitis-like cancer) have the most unfavorable prognosis, which is explained by the extreme aggressiveness of these forms of the disease and their high level of resistance to any therapy, therefore, the survival of patients in the early stages of the disease is about 3 years, in late - from 4 to 16 months.

Alice states that people are used to associate self-esteem with appearance, but self-esteem is more than that. “This is emotional work, it starts from the inside out,” he says. When a person feels good, you can accept what is happening. "Self-esteem is important to counter the changes that this woman will face." Therefore, help from a psychologist, preferably with a specialization in psycho-oncology, can help a lot.

This is the time when patients feel more comfortable to say what they feel, talk about fear in the face of the disease. "And from there the thing changes, they find great power within themselves." This is the moment, still in accordance with the mastologist, in which the woman begins to assimilate the measurement of the disease in her life and accept to live in this moment. "She understands that this ends up being meaningful, an apprenticeship and that she can learn a lesson from this, deny her something."


Cancer survival without treatment

Some women refuse traditional treatment, preferring to focus their efforts on finding any alternative measures to combat the disease. Without adequate therapy, the five-year survival rate does not exceed 12-15%.

She finds other points on which to rely, knowing that her beauty is behind her hair. That is why the most important thing is to increase self-esteem. In addition to psychological support, the patient is supported by a very large multidisciplinary team that focuses on emergency care.

Another important point in treatment is the support of other women who go through or through the disease. It is very important to have this integration, they get acquainted with positive stories, and this also helps in self-assessment. We notice the difference of these people over time.

Treatment

The prognosis for breast cancer is much more favorable for the implementation of complex treatment. The main method is surgical intervention. Good results are shown by the subsequent use of chemotherapy, hormone therapy, radiation and immune therapy.

Prognosis for relapse

The recurrence of the disease is the appearance of oncological symptoms after the treatment. After a few months or years, cancer processes begin to develop again. They can be in the place of the primary tumor, and in other parts of the breast, and in the other mammary gland, as well as in other organs. The relapsing course is most characteristic of the low-differentiated form of the disease, often relapses with invasive ductal carcinoma, since it leads to the formation of metastases in the axillary lymph nodes. Experts note that for tumors of more than 5 centimeters, relapses are observed 5-6 times more often than in smaller tumors.

During an illness, a woman’s relationship with her body is taken care of. Usually, when the diagnosis comes, the woman must cope with the shock of the news. For many, there is denial, cancer phobia, which is a phobia about the diagnosis, rejection of the disease. Psychological counseling will help get emotional subsidies for treatment.

Already when breast injury occurs, a more difficult step comes. It shocks women. There are patients who refuse to look in the mirror until they realize that there is a possibility of reconstruction. Cancer also affects the sexual part, but, according to Eliza Maria, there is usually intense communication with a partner, strong support and emotional support. But there are cases when partners refuse to have intercourse, looking through the patient’s entire body. In some situations, they ultimately remain abandoned.

Survival in case of recurrence of the disease is determined by the methods of the applied therapy and ranges from 1 to 2 years. Moreover, if the process is limited to the mammary gland, the chances of the patient are much higher than when metastases occur in other organs of the body.

As follows from the statistics, the earlier the diagnosis was made, the more favorable the prognosis of the disease. That is why all women should take care of their health and not neglect preventive measures. To do this, you must do a mammogram, breast ultrasound, and every month to conduct self-examination. Breast cancer with all its danger is the most studied form of cancer, and survival in the early stages of this disease is quite high.

As soon as the initial phase ends, self-esteem acquires a new color. I observe that this is not the same as before, but better. A woman begins to appreciate the problems that she did not appreciate before, she begins to see life differently, and her safety comes with more intensity, she sees more strong and recognizes herself as a phoenix.

Reception of the disease goes through many phases. The face of a retired teacher, Flavius ​​Oliveira Campos, 56, note that this is a well-groomed woman with make-up and natural female vanity, which can not be but earrings and chains. The blouse's tone, bright red, is the one who likes to feel "up". But more than her appearance, just talk a little with her to see how beautiful it is inside. Flavia speaks with hope, who knows from which of them she came out, and her appearance differs in different brightness - confidence in overcoming.

How many live with breast cancer? This is the first question that a woman is interested in if she has breast cancer. Modern medicine has learned well to treat this disease in its early stages. Late stages of breast cancer   treatable much worse, but they are treated.

She recalls that eight years ago she was diagnosed with breast cancer. I needed to take the whole chest. I was disgusting, disappointed, ”she recalls, but the ability to reduce the tumor with chemotherapy reassured her. "I was able to reduce the size, so the operation removed only part of the breast."

Flavia uses a prosthesis and receives cancer observation from the Sorocabana League, a place where he considers his point of view as well-being. Only when she met this person and began to perform the activities offered there, did she regain her self-esteem and now thinks about breast reconstruction.

How common is breast cancer?

The incidence of breast cancer (BC) in our country, as in other civilized countries, is growing. Since the mid 80s of the last century in the structure of cancer incidence in Russia breast cancer belongs to the first place. The annual increase in the incidence of breast cancer over the past 10 years is 5.8%.

Up to this point of taking the disease, Flavia went through many stages, and she fell and rose, and she gradually won at each stage. She recalls that breast cancer spreads through the shoulder, arm, spine and mouth. “I risked shedding my jaws,” he recalls.

Physiotherapists do lymphatic drainage in Flavia. Since my hand is not depleted naturally, it is important to me lymphatic system, it becomes more bloated. This new form of chemotherapy through pills does not cause hair loss and does not have side effectssays Flavia. She advises women to always be alert and periodically go to the gynecologist. I did not have a family business, so it can happen to anyone. When you notice another sign, you need to run. The key is to try to cling to God, and we will win.

17.8% of cases of breast cancer were detected during routine check-ups, of which 60% are breast cancer I stage II, 26.1% stage III, 12.5% ​​stage IV. The highest incidence rates and growth rates were observed in the age groups of 60–64 years (136.5 cases per 100 thousand population) and 65–69 years (133.2 per 100 thousand). At a younger age from 20 to 40 years, rates were significantly lower, with age they grew from 0.59 to 32, 5 cases per 100 thousand population. The highest incidence rates of breast cancer were noted in large cities, especially in Moscow and St. Petersburg.

But the fact is that even taking all measures, performing regular exams, some women face this disease. So, today we will talk about an equally important problem: the restoration of self-esteem in women with breast cancer. It is clear that overcoming a tumor and achieving physical healing is the great goal of anyone who goes through something like that, but we cannot forget how much a woman’s emotional emotions suffer from a diagnosis, during treatment and until completion.

Performing chemotherapy sessions, she usually loses hair, eyelashes, eyebrows. He goes through breastfeeding interventions, and many of them feel that their femininity is being attacked. In addition, they need to deal with the disease itself and the entire difficult medical procedure. which can cause greater vulnerability and insecurity.

Malignant neoplasms of the mammary glands have the largest share in the structure of mortality - 16.5%. The highest age-specific death rates are 75 years and older (86.2% per 100 thousand of population).

In our country, the survival rate of all patients with breast cancer under observation for 5 years averages 55%. But these are average indicators, they can be different depending on the stage at which breast cancer was detected and treated.

What factors affect survival for breast cancer?

The longevity of breast cancer is influenced by the following factors: tumor size, the presence or absence of metastases to regional lymph nodes, the presence or absence of female sex hormone receptors in the tumor, the histological type of tumor, infiltration of surrounding tissues, metastasis to distant organs and others. The number of such factors increases as we study the biology of the tumor process.

Influence of regional lymph nodes

In the absence of metastases to nearby lymph nodes, relapses of the disease within five years after treatment occur on average in 20% of cases. The ten-year survival rate is 65–80%.

In the presence of metastases   in 1-3 lymph nodes, the return of the disease within five years after treatment occurred in 30–40% of cases, and a ten-year survival was 35–65%.

Metastases in five or more lymph nodes: relapses within five years - 54-82%, ten-year survival 13-24%.

The effect of tumor size

An increase in the size of the primary tumor in the mammary gland directly affects the life expectancy of patients. Thus, 88% of patients experience a twenty-year period without relapse with a tumor size of up to 1 cm and about 65% with a primary focus diameter of 2 cm or more.

The degree of involvement in the tumor process regional lymph nodes  depends on the size of the tumor. So, with a tumor size less than 1 cm in diameter, the lymph nodes   are involved in less than 20–30% of cases. With a tumor size of 1-2 cm, this percentage increases to 27-39, and with a size of 2-3 cm - to 29-57.

The presence or absence in the tumor receptors for female sex hormones

The presence in the tumor receptors for female sex hormones (estrogen and progesterone   - RE and RP) is a good prognostic sign, as it allows the use of hormone therapy as a treatment - this increases the patients' chances of survival.

Histological type of tumor - how it affects the survival of patients