Factors that determine breast cancer stage include the size of the tumor, whether the cancer has spread to other parts of the body, whether the cancer is invasive and whether the lymph nodes have been affected. Determining the stage of breast cancer helps healthcare professionals provide patients with the most effective treatment options. For instance, stage II breast cancer treatments will differ from patients who are diagnosed with a level III or IV.
Defining Stage II Breast Cancer
According to BreastCancer.org, stage II breast cancer is divided into two subcategories known as IIA and IIB:
There are three different scenarios that are considered stage IIA breast cancer:
1. An invasive breast cancer in which cancer cells are identified in the lymph nodes under the arm (axillary lymph nodes), but there is not an actual tumor in the breast.
2. A tumor in the breast that is smaller than two centimeters, but has already spread to the axillary lymph nodes.
3. A tumor that is between two and five centimeters wide that has not yet spread to the axillary lymph nodes.
Stage IIB breast cancer is used to describe either:
1. A tumor that is between two and five centimeters and has made its way to the axillary lymph nodes.
2. A tumor that has not yet spread to the axillary lymph nodes, but is at least five centimeters wide.
Stage II Breast Cancer Treatment Options
Women with stage II breast cancer will most likely undergo surgery followed by radiation and chemotherapy. Because no two women are the same, however, every case of breast cancer, even those falling into the same stage, will differ. Thus, there is not one specific treatment designed for patients with stage II breast cancer.
In most cases, according to WebMD, a combination of treatments will likely be used to battle stage II breast cancer. Following are the most common treatment options.
Surgery
According to WebMD, because the cancer in stage II tends to be contained to the breast and, in the worst cases, its nearby lymph nodes, most women with this type of breast cancer will undergo surgery. Depending on the size of the tumor, there are two types of surgery used to treat stage II breast cancer:
1. Lumpectomy: A breast-conserving procedure in which the tumor and some of the surrounding breast tissue is removed without misshaping the breast.
2. Mastectomy: Historically, when a mastectomy was performed the entire breast was removed. Today, there are other types of mastectomy designed to be less invasive. The type of mastectomy will depend on the size of the tumor and other factors such as the patient's age, overall health and menopause status.
Radiation Therapy
Most lumpectomies are performed in conjunction with radiation therapy. Radiation therapy is used to kill cancer cells that survive surgery. In some cases, radiation will also be administered to patients following a mastectomy.
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy describes treatment with cancer fighting drugs. In most cases, women with stage II breast cancer will be treated with chemotherapy in combination with surgery and radiation. The drugs are designed to kill any undetected cancer cells that may have spread to other areas of the body. Chemotherapy may also be used to shrink a tumor before surgery.
Hormone Therapy
Hormone therapy is designed to prevent the body from producing naturally occurring estrogen in women whose tumors contain estrogen receptors (ER-positive). This type of cancer feeds on the body's natural production of estrogen. Doctors will likely prescribe oral pills that will block the body from producing estrogen.
Biological Therapy
According to WebMD, one of the newest treatments for stage II breast cancer is called biological therapy. This treatment is designed specifically for women with an excessive amount of the protein, HER2, which causes cancer to spread at a rapid rate. WebMD claims that about 25 percent of women with breast cancer have an excess of HER2. Biological therapy uses Herceptin, a drug designed to prevent the protein from feeding the cancer. In many cases, this stage II breast cancer treatment will be used in conjunction with chemotherapy because Herceptin is said to help advance the effectiveness of chemotherapy.
Tags: breast cancer, lymph nodes, axillary lymph, axillary lymph nodes, stage breast, stage breast cancer
