Ductal Breast Cancer

Ductal breast cancer explained simply and clearly so you can understand it right away and know what is going on

Ductal breast cancer is one of the most common types of breast cancer. It can be of two types: ductal carcinoma in situ and invasive ductal breast cancer. This is when the cancer is formed in the ducts of the breast anatomy.

In order to understand ductal breast cancer, you need to understand a bit about breast anatomy. Breasts are made from lobules, that make the milk of the breast, and ducts, that carry the milk from the breast lobules to the nipple. There is also a lot of fat and connective tissue in the breast that generally do not form cancer.

Lobules, on the other hand, form lobular carcinoma of the breast. Lobular carcinoma is less common than ductal breast cancer.

Ductal Carcinoma in Situ

Ductal breast cancer in situ is also called ductal carcinoma in situ or DCIS. It is also known as intraductal carcinoma.

It has not metastasized and is small enough so that it has not passed through the wall of the duct. About 20 percent of all cases of breast cancer are ductal carcinoma in situ.

Ductal carcinoma in situ is generally so small that you can’t feel it. It is found on a mammogram and is found early enough that a lumpectomy can be done to remove it. This is opposed to invasive ductal carcinoma, which may have already metastasized and has spread beyond the duct wall.

The doctor will look for cell death within the tumor under the microscope. If cell death is found, also called “tumor necrosis”, the ductal breast cancer is likely to be more aggressive. More treatment will be required for this type of tumor, called a “comedocarcinoma”.

Invasive Ductal Carcinoma

This is the most common types of breast cancer you will find. Invasive ductal breast cancer means that the cancer has spread past the walls of the duct, into other breast tissue and perhaps as far as places like the lungs, liver or brain.

Invasive ductal breast cancer represents about 80 percent of all invasive breast cancers. The milk passage is usually blocked and there can be swelling of the breast in that area. There can also be dimpling of the breast or a puckering of the skin of the breast.

Comparing Ductal Breast Cancer with Other Types of Breast Cancer

There are other types of breast cancer you should know about. There is lobular carcinoma, which is found in the milk-producing lobes of the breast. Lobular carcinoma isn’t as common as ductal breast cancer.

You can have lobular carcinoma in situ or invasive lobular carcinoma. It is not as serious a type of cancer as is ductal breast cancer.

Invasive lobular carcinoma means that the cancer has spread beyond the borders of the milk lobule. The cancer can then spread to other breast areas and to the lymph nodes. This kind of breast cancer can also spread to other body areas. Only about 10 percent of invasive breast cancers are invasive lobular carcinoma.

Inflammatory Breast Cancer

This is a much worse cancer than ductal breast cancer. It involves many parts of the breast anatomy, including the skin. The breast cancer is not in a lump but is spread throughout the skin and underlying breast tissue. It is an aggressive form of breast cancer. Fortunately, it represents only about 2 percent of all breast cancer types.

How is Ductal Breast Cancer Treated?

The first thing doctors do when you have breast cancer is determine if it is ductal carcinoma in situ, invasive ductal breast cancer or lobular carcinoma. Doctors know that the different types of breast cancer are treated differently. They look to see if there are lymph nodes involved and if there is metastatic disease.

Surgery is usually the first thing that is done to ductal breast cancer. Sometimes a large tumor is treated with radiation or chemotherapy to shrink it before having surgery. After surgery, you may have radiation or chemotherapy (or both).

Your tumor will be checked for the receptor status. This means that the tumor is checked for a positive estrogen receptor, a positive progesterone receptor or a positive HER2 receptor. If they are positive, medications are given that block the receptors.

When the receptors are blocked, the tumor doesn’t grow as fast. The medications include Tamoxifen and Raloxifene for estrogen receptor positive status, Megace for progesterone positive status and Herceptin for HER2 positive receptor status.

The standard treatment for ductal carcinoma in situ includes surgery to conserve the breast and then treating with radiation and maybe tamoxifen, depending on receptor status. A total mastectomy might be indicated in other circumstances. Doctors sometimes just do surgery and don’t do any radiation or chemotherapy.