Understanding 14 Critical Details about Inflammatory Breast Cancer
Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) is a rare and aggressive type of breast cancer where the first signs usually appear as changes in the skin of the breast. It makes up only about 2% to 4% of all breast cancer cases diagnosed each year, but it's particularly dangerous because it tends to lead to more deaths compared to other types of breast cancer.
Despite these challenges, there's reason for hope. We've made progress in how we diagnose and treat this disease. While not everyone with IBC can be cured, many can be treated successfully with the right therapies and medical care.
As the head of MD Anderson's Inflammatory Breast Cancer Clinic, I often hear many questions from patients and their families about this condition. Here, I'll answer some of the most common ones.
1. What does inflammatory breast cancer look like?
Inflammatory breast cancer often shows up with redness or a change in color on the breast skin, along with swelling. This can give the breast a reddish, pinkish, or even purplish appearance. The skin might also feel thicker, and sometimes the nipple might be turned inward.
2. How do doctors usually find out if someone has inflammatory breast cancer?
Unlike other types of breast cancer that form lumps or show up on regular mammograms, inflammatory breast cancer is harder to catch early. It's often misdiagnosed because its symptoms—like fast skin changes and swelling—make patients go to the doctor based on what they can see, rather than feeling a lump.
3. Does inflammatory breast cancer hurt?
Some people with inflammatory breast cancer do feel pain, but not everyone does.
4. Can inflammatory breast cancer make your skin itch?
Sometimes it can, but not everyone with the condition experiences itching.
5. How quickly does inflammatory breast cancer spread?
For many people, the disease moves fast from the first skin changes to affecting the whole breast, sometimes in just a few weeks or days. To be called inflammatory breast cancer, these skin changes must have happened within the last six months and cover at least a third of the breast.
6. What treatments are available for inflammatory breast cancer?
Doctors usually start with systemic therapies like chemotherapy, targeted therapy, or immunotherapy to shrink the tumor and stop it from spreading further. After that, they might do surgery called a mastectomy to remove all the cancerous tissue, including the affected skin. Radiation therapy is then used to target any remaining cancer cells.
7. Is inflammatory breast cancer something that can be cured?
Yes, it can be cured, especially if it's found and treated early. The goal of treatment is to make the cancer completely go away with no sign of it left. However, once it's reached stage IV, while it can often be managed for long periods, it's usually not possible to cure it.
8. What causes inflammatory breast cancer?
We don't know exactly what causes it, but some things might make certain people more likely to get it. These include race—Black women are more likely to get it—being overweight, breastfeeding history, and age when having the first pregnancy.
9. Can you inherit inflammatory breast cancer?
Like other types of breast cancer, if your family has a history of breast cancer, you might be more likely to get it. But there isn’t a specific genetic test for inflammatory breast cancer right now.
10. Can a blood test show if someone has inflammatory breast cancer?
No, inflammatory breast cancer doesn't show up in a way that can be detected with a regular blood test. Newer tests like liquid biopsies are being studied to see if they can help track the progress of the disease.
11. Are some people more likely to get inflammatory breast cancer than others?
While it can happen at any age, it's more often found in younger women, those who are overweight, and those of African descent. Changes in hormones during pregnancy and breastfeeding may also play a part in why some people get it.
12. What should someone look for when choosing where to get treated for inflammatory breast cancer?
Because it’s rare and grows fast, it's really important to go to a hospital or cancer center that has a lot of experience with inflammatory breast cancer. Places like MD Anderson have experts who see many patients with this kind of cancer and can give the best care from the start to after treatment.
13. Why does inflammatory breast cancer come back more often?
Inflammatory breast cancer grows quickly and spreads early, which makes it more likely to come back even after treatment. It's a very aggressive type of cancer.
14. What can someone do to lower the chances of inflammatory breast cancer coming back?
Following the right order of treatments from the beginning—like doing systemic therapies first, then surgery, and specific radiation—can help reduce the risk of the cancer coming back. It's important to stick to the best ways to treat it and to join any studies that might help learn more.
In short, while dealing with inflammatory breast cancer is tough, new ways to treat it give hope for better outcomes. By knowing what sets it apart and getting care from places that know how to handle it, patients can get the latest treatments and support they need to fight this challenging disease effectively.