Anyone familiar with this type of cancer?

Question

Today, my mom was diagnosed with Infiltrated Lobular breast cancer, is anyone familiar with this type and how severe is it in comparison with other types of breast cancer? (she's getting a masectomy monday)

Answer 1

Infiltrating lublar carcinoma describes breast cancer that starts from cells in the lobules of the breast, and spreads to other parts of the breast, and potentially to other parts of the body. It is the second most common type of invasive prest cancer, representing 10-15% of invasive breast cancer cases.

There are two main types of breast cancer: infiltrating and in situ. In situ cancers stay where they are and don't spread to other parts of the breast or the rest of the body. Infiltrating ones do spread. The infiltrating types of breast cancer are more likely to be more serious than the in situ ones in that they can potentially spread to the vital organs. However, there's no overall rule for predicting how severe a particular case is based on what type it is. The severity of the disease depends far more on how advanced it is and whether or not it has spread to other parts of the body.

Breast cancer is overall one of the more treatable forms of cancer. If the cancer hasn't let metastasized (spread), there's a good chance that the all the cancer cells will be removed in the mastectomy. If the cancer has spread to other parts of the body, there's still a chance that it can be eliminated with chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and other treatments. There are various ways to essentially label cancer cells so they'll show up on various types of scans, so your mother's doctor should be able to tell you whether the cancer has spread outside the breast.

Answer 2

Infiltrating (or Invasive) Ductal Carcinoma (IDC)
This is the most common breast cancer. Starting in a milk passage, or duct, of the breast, this cancer breaks through the wall of the duct and invades the breast’s fatty tissue. Under the microscope, ductal carcinoma looks like a mass with poorly defined edges that have begun to extend into the surrounding tissue. As the cancer invades the fatty tissue around a duct, it causes the formation of fibrous, scar-like tissue. Such scar formation may make ductal carcinoma appear larger than it actually is. Depending upon the location of the tumor, the symptoms of invasive ductal carcinoma may include retraction (drawing inward) of the nipple or nipple discharge and skin changes such as wrinkling or dimpling. Infiltrating or invasive ductal carcinoma accounts for about 80% of all breast cancers.

Infiltrating (or Invasive) Lobular Carcinoma (ILC)
This type of cancer starts in the milk-producing glands. Similar to IDC, it also can spread (metastasize) to other parts of the body. Lobular carcinomas make up approximately 5% to 10% of all invasive breast cancers. Lobular breast cancer is more difficult to detect by mammography because it may not occur as a distinct lump. Instead, lobular carcinoma may appear as an irregular thickening in the breast. A small proportion of women (5%) may develop lobular carcinoma in both breasts
Stage 0
Stage 0 is sometimes called noninvasive carcinoma or carcinoma in situ. Lobular carcinoma in situ (LCIS) refers to abnormal cells in the lining of a lobule. These abnormal cells seldom become invasive cancer. Nevertheless, their presence is an indication that a woman has an increased possibility of developing breast cancer. This risk of cancer is increased for both breasts.

Stage I and II
Stage I and stage II are early stages of breast cancer in which the cancer has spread beyond the lobe or duct and infiltrated nearby tissue. Stage I means that the tumor is no more than about an inch across and cancer cells have not spread beyond the breast. Stage II means one of the following: the tumor in the breast is less than 1 inch across and the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes under the arm; or the tumor is between 1 and 2 inches (with or without spread to the lymph nodes under the arm); or the tumor is larger than 2 inches but has not spread to the lymph nodes under the arm.

Stage III
Stage III is also called locally advanced cancer. In this stage, the tumor in the breast is large (more than 2 inches across) and the cancer has spread to the underarm lymph nodes; or the cancer is widespread in the underarm lymph nodes; or the cancer has spread to lymph nodes near the breastbone or to other tissues near the breast.

Stage IV
Stage IV is metastatic cancer. The cancer has spread further than the breast and underarm lymph nodes to other parts of the body.

Answer 3

Good question. See: http://www.cancer.org/docroot/MED/content/MED_2_1x_Lobular_Breast_Cancer_Can_Be_Managed_As_Ductal_Cancer.asp?sitearea=MED

ILC is different compared to invasive ductal cancer and is not usually picked up by mammograms. It was thought that ILC is typically larger than the area it was detected and can be multifocal or in the contralateral breast. Therefore ILC tend to get mastectomies. Do not delay treatment but make sure your mom's doctor is a breast cancer surgeon and specialist. Ask about the article as well.