How fast can breast cancer grow?

This Breast Cancer Awareness Month, let’s find out how many people battle it across the US. According to studies and statistics, breast cancer is more common now than it ever was. About 1 in 8 American women and 1 in 833 American men develop invasive breast cancer over the course of their lives. If you or someone you know has been diagnosed with breast cancer, now is the right time to find out about their growth rate.

The growth and doubling time depends on what type of breast cancer you have. Each type of breast cancer has a different growth rate. The correct answer also depends on your genetics and how far breast cancer has already spread.

The growth rate of breast cancer depends on the following:

Stage

There are 5 stages of breast cancer depending on which area your breast cancer is. Whether it’s in the lymph nodes, lobules, or milk ducts, or if it has grown into breast tissues, or if it has gone beyond the breasts. Stage IV means it has gone beyond the breasts and reached other parts of the body including the organs and the brain. The cancer cells that are present in the lobules and ducts are the dangerous ones. They have the ability to break through to the other parts of the body and spread cancer faster than ever

Subtype

Breast cancer has many subtypes. A few subtypes have the ability to grow faster than others. The subtypes include tubular, mucinous, medullary, and papillary. With the help of this subtype, your doctor will have some clue about how fast cancer will grow and spread. For example, triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is considered to be aggressive cancer because of its quick growth. It grows at the same time it is found. Also, this is the type of breast cancer that has more chances of coming back even after recovering

Grade

Your doctor will provide you with a grade number from 0 to 13. This grade is how your cancer cells look under a microscope. Cells that appear normal are usually slow to spread, whereas the abnormal-looking cells are aggressive and grow faster

Genetics

Some breast cancers tend to pick up on certain genetics and grow faster than usual. Furthermore, some people who are born with certain genetic changes are more likely to develop breast cancer

Age

Breast cancer usually affects women in their 50s and above. If a young person has developed breast cancer, there are chances for this cancer to grow more aggressively

Menopausal state

Women who haven’t attained menopause yet and have breast cancer may witness the rapid growth of the cells more than the women who have attained their menopause. This is due to the estrogen present in the body

How quickly breast cancer spreads

One of the main reasons why people succumb to breast cancer is because of its expansion to other parts of the body. That’s why it’s crucial to know how fast your cancer is growing. Breast cancers that are detected at an early stage have the most potential to be cured.

Breast cancer usually spreads first to lymph nodes under the arm. This is called lymph node-positive breast cancer. However, the ones that spread to the lungs, brain, liver, or brain, are considered stage IV. This stage is also known as metastatic breast cancer. This is the stage where the cancer is no longer curable.

How to detect breast cancer

The earlier breast cancer is detected, the better chance it has of being cured. That’s why you need to self-examine every once in a while. Here are some ways how breast cancer can be detected.

Breast examination

Examine for lumps in your breast. Breast lumps that are tiny can only be found by an expert. However, lumps that are bigger can easily be found by yourself

Mammogram

Breast cancers that are very small are detected with the help of a mammogram

Breast MRI

Breast MRI has little chance of finding a tumor. However, there is a new technique called “fast MRI” that may be beneficial in finding tumors just like mammograms

How fast breast cancer can grow varies from person to person depending on their lifestyle, cancer subtype, and their genetics. Be sure to contact your doctor if you see any unusual nodes on any part of your body.