Hearing the word “metastasized” in a conversation about cancer can be disconcerting and worrisome. Breast cancer can metastasize after it is first diagnosed, or it can metastasize before diagnosis — a condition known as metastatic breast cancer. If you’ve been diagnosed with breast cancer metastasis, here’s an explanation of what that means.
What It Means When Cancer Metastasizes
“When we say that cancer has ‘metastasized,’ it means that it has spread to other parts of the body from where it started,” says Dr. J. Eric Turner, a board-certified and fellowship-trained medical oncologist at Beaufort Memorial Oncology Specialists. “In the case of breast cancer, it means that breast cancer cells have spread beyond the breast and nearby lymph nodes.”
Breast cancer that has spread is known as metastatic breast cancer, but it may also be called advanced breast cancer or stage IV breast cancer. These terms all mean the same thing — the cancer has spread beyond the breast tissue into other parts of the body.
When breast cancer metastasizes, it can spread to the brain, bones, lungs or liver. Even after appearing in other parts of the body, the cancer cells are still breast cancer cells. That’s why the condition is called metastatic breast cancer even when it affects other body parts.
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How Breast Cancer Metastasis Is Diagnosed
Breast cancer metastasis is sometimes discovered after routine breast cancer screening, such as an annual mammogram. In other cases, metastatic breast cancer is detected during follow-up testing for a man or woman receiving treatment for breast cancer or in the years after treatment.
Diagnostic testing may also be recommended if you’re experiencing unexplained symptoms that could be related to metastatic breast cancer. Fatigue and unintentional weight loss are common, but more specific symptoms of metastatic breast cancer vary widely, depending on where the cancer has spread:
- Bones: If the cancer has spread to the bones, recurrent bone pain and swelling can occur.
- Brain: Breast cancer metastasized to the brain can cause progressive symptoms, including vision disruptions, behavioral or mood changes, seizures, and persistent headaches.
- Liver: Breast cancer in the liver can cause a yellowing of the skin known as jaundice, abdominal pain, appetite changes and itchy skin.
- Lungs: Cancer that has spread to the lungs can cause a chronic cough, difficulty breathing and chest pain.
If you experience any symptoms that seem out of the norm, it’s important to talk with your medical provider, especially if you’re currently receiving breast cancer treatment or have in the past.
Your medical provider can order diagnostic tests to identify the cause of symptoms and verify whether metastatic breast cancer is an underlying cause. Depending on your specific symptoms and the part of the body affected, these tests may include blood tests, bone scans, MRI, CT scans, X-ray, bronchoscopy and biopsy.
Read More: Choosing the Right Type of Breast Cancer Surgery — and Why It Matters
Treating Breast Cancer That Has Spread
Breast cancer of any stage can be treated, and many men and women with metastatic breast cancer live fulfilling lives after diagnosis.
While there is currently no cure for metastatic breast cancer, your care team can put together an ongoing treatment plan designed to help you live longer and sustain a good quality of life.
“When we treat metastatic breast cancer, or any cancer that has spread from its original site, we have multiple goals in mind,” Dr. Turner says. “We want to shrink existing tumors, slow or delay the spread of cancer cells and the growth of other tumors, and treat any symptoms a patient is experiencing.”
Testing performed after a metastatic breast cancer diagnosis, including genetic testing and testing of the tumor’s biologic makeup, can help medical providers determine the best forms of treatment. When creating your treatment plan, your care team will also consider other factors, such as your overall health, any personal goals or needs you have, and past cancer treatments you have received.
Treatment for metastatic breast cancer typically includes a combination of multiple therapies, designed to work collaboratively. This may include:
- Chemotherapy to damage or destroy cancer cells
- Hormonal therapy to shrink or slow the growth of hormone receptor-positive cancers, including cancer receptors for estrogen and progesterone
- Immunotherapy to boost the immune system’s ability to kill cancer cells
- Targeted therapy using medications to specifically target a known characteristic of a tumor, such as certain proteins
Surgery and radiation therapy may, in some circumstances, be used to treat metastatic breast cancer. Clinical trials of new and innovative therapies may also be an option.
“Living with metastatic breast cancer can feel overwhelming,” Dr. Turner says. “I encourage patients to listen to their minds and bodies and to seek out support from their loved ones and medical team. We’re here to help you at every step of the process, and you are not alone.”
If you’ve been diagnosed with breast cancer, connect with a breast cancer navigator at Beaufort Memorial, who can walk beside you through treatment.
