How Long Can You Have Breast Cancer Without Knowing? While there is no straight answer to this, some cancers are more easily detected than others. Some cancers can form and grow undetected for 10 years or more, as one study found, making diagnosis and treatment that much more difficult.
You can have breast cancer without knowing it for several years, depending on how quickly it starts, grows, and spreads. Annually, almost 288,000 new breast cancer cases are diagnosed in the United States. More than half of these cancers are found before they spread beyond the breast.
Breast cancer has to divide 30 times before it can be felt. Up to the 28th cell division, neither you nor your doctor can detect it by hand. With most breast cancers, each division takes one to two months, so by the time you can feel a cancerous lump, the cancer has been in your body for two to five years.
There's no right or wrong way to feel after a diagnosis of breast cancer. You'll probably go through many emotions, from fear, shock and anger to disbelief, sadness and numbness. Your emotions may change day to day or even hour to hour.
The symptoms of metastatic breast cancer may be different than those of early-stage breast cancer, but not always. Sometimes, there are no symptoms at all.
However, survival varies greatly from person to person. About one-third of women diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer in the U.S. live at least 5 years after diagnosis [7]. Some women may live 10 or more years beyond diagnosis [9].
Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) does not cause any symptoms. Rarely, a woman may feel a lump in the breast or have nipple discharge. However, most cases of DCIS are detected with a mammogram.
Some general symptoms that breast cancer may have spread include: Feeling constantly tired. Constant nausea (feeling sick) Unexplained weight loss and loss of appetite.
Intermittent claudication and appetite loss are common among breast cancer survivors and are associated with cardiac dysfunction and mood disorders. Other symptoms varied by whether the patient underwent chemotherapy with/without radiotherapy (forgetfulness and nocturia) radiotherapy alone (dizziness).
A painless, hard mass that has irregular edges is more likely to be cancer, but breast cancers can be also soft, round, tender, or even painful. Other possible symptoms of breast cancer include: Swelling of all or part of a breast (even if no lump is felt) Skin dimpling (sometimes looking like an orange peel)
New lump in the breast or underarm (armpit). Thickening or swelling of part of the breast. Irritation or dimpling of breast skin. Redness or flaky skin in the nipple area or the breast.
And if untreated, breast cancer universally becomes a fatal disease. It can happen over long periods of time, but if you don't have surgery and if you don't have other treatments, it doesn't go away on its own. That's why we recommend (to) people that they get appropriate medical treatment.
Most breast cancers are found in women who are 50 years old or older. Some women will get breast cancer even without any other risk factors that they know of. Having a risk factor does not mean you will get the disease, and not all risk factors have the same effect.
With treatment, the prognosis (chances of survival) for young women diagnosed with early breast cancer are good. However, prognosis tends to be worse for women under 40 than for older women. This is because breast cancers in younger women can be more aggressive than breast cancers in older women [221].
About 80% of women diagnosed with breast cancer each year are ages 45 or older, and about 43% are ages 65 or above. Consider this: In women ages 40 to 50, there is a one in 69 risk of developing breast cancer. From ages 50 to 60, that risk increases to one in 43. In the 60 to 70 age group, the risk is one in 29.
Patients with stage 2 breast cancer may not experience any symptoms, and the cancer may be discovered during a routine mammogram. Possible breast cancer symptoms in stage 2 include: A lump in the breast or armpit. Nipple discharge.
Very early-stage DCIS breast cancers typically don't have symptoms. Though it's sometimes possible to feel a small, hard lump, most people discover they have stage 0 breast cancer through regular mammogram screenings.
Breast cancer usually does not cause symptoms in the early stages. Constantly feeling sick with nausea or fatigue may be a sign that the cancer has spread. If you experience persistent nausea, fatigue, loss of appetite, or unexplained weight loss, talk to your doctor.
ANSWER: Breast cancer is not always accompanied by a lump. Many women diagnosed with breast cancer never have any signs or symptoms, and their cancer is found on a screening test, such as a mammogram.
Potential reasons behind this statistic include larger left breast size, more frequent self-screening of left breast, and right-side breastfeeding preferences.
When cancer spreads, the lymph node located closest to the original tumor (the sentinel node) is usually affected first. In breast cancer cases, the sentinel lymph node is often located in the underarm area.
The study demonstrated that the blood test can determine whether a patient has breast cancer in the early stages. A special blood test, called a liquid biopsy, could determine whether a patient has breast cancer in its early stages and if that cancer is unlikely to return.
Yes. Many women who are diagnosed with breast cancer say they didn't notice any symptoms. This is why regular breast cancer screenings are so strongly advised. We recommend women start the conversation about when to have annual screening mammograms at age 40.