What Does Breast Cancer Look Like?

What does breast cancer look like? - many people wonder.

There are always a small number of cancer cells in your body. Your body prevents them from growing beyond a specific limit. But when these controlling systems do not work properly, cells start growing abnormally. Eventually this unrestricted growth leads to the formation of a tumor. A tumor may be benign, or a tumor may be cancerous.

Ductal Carcinoma in situ

Normal breast with non–invasive ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) in an enlarged cross–section of the duct.

Breast profile:

A ducts
B lobules
C dilated section of duct to hold milk
D nipple
E fat
F pectoralis major muscle
G chest wall/rib cage

Enlargement:

A normal duct cells
B ductal cancer cells
C basement membrane
D lumen (center of duct)

Ductal Carcinoma in situ (DCIS)

Ductal Carcinoma in situ

Breast cancer typically starts in the milk ducts of the breast. This beginning, detectable on a mammogram is ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS). These cancer cells can pierce through or invade the walls of the ducts into the surrounding breast tissue.

How Does Breast Cancer Spread?

The cancer cells encounter microscopic blood vessels and/or lymph channels. These malignant cells break through the walls of these very tiny vessels and travel outside the breast ducts to other parts of the body. All this can occur before you can ever feel it as a lump.

The lymph system

Lymph Node Areas Adjacent to Breast Area

A Pectoralis major muscle
B Axillary lymph nodes: levels I
C Axillary lymph nodes: levels II
D Axillary lymph nodes: levels III
E Supraclavicular lymph nodes
F Internal mammary lymph nodes

Lymph is a clear fluid that travels through your body. It:

• Circulates through your tissues to clean them and
• Then drains away through the lymphatic channels.

Lymph nodes are the filters along the lymph channels. Their job is to filter out and trap:

• Bacteria
• Viruses
• Cancer cells
• Dead cells
• Other unwanted cells

The most common lymph nodes around the breast are:

• Axillary nodes – under the arm
• Internal mammary nodes – along the center of the rib cage
• Supraclavicular nodes – near the collar bone

Pictures of Breast Cancer

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1276001-media

The circulatory system

At the cellular level of breast cancer, the malignant cells can pass into the capillaries. The capillaries are the very fine, one-cell thick passageways for your blood. From there, the blood will travel into the small arteries of the breast, and eventually to the arteries in your arm to your lungs and then to your heart.

Since the malignant cells may pass through your lungs, that is a common site for cancer to spread. Since the liver filters your blood supply, that is another common site for cancer to spread. Cancer occurs also in bone and muscle and fatty tissue. When cancer spreads, doctors call it metastatic cancer

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1276001-media

What does breast cancer look like?

There are different types of breast cancer such as invasive and non-invasive.

Here is a picture of inflammatory breast cancer. Inflammatory breast cancer is a rare but very serious and aggressive form of breast cancer. Your breast may look red and feel warm. You may see ridges or welts on the breast. It is occasionally misdiagnosed as an infection.

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1276001-media

Here is a picture of advanced breast cancer. It is usually Stage 4 breast cancer with lymph node involvement. You can see from the picture how large the tumor area has become.

Nipple retraction due to breast cancer.

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1276001-media

What does breast cancer look like?

It can be small and isolated in a milk duct. It can be large and engulf a lobe of the breast. Below are diagnostic images of a woman’s breast. You can see the cancer best in the MRI.

http://www.breastcancer.org/pictures/diagnosis/

Now that you have seen different images of breast cancer, you may want to take some preventative actions. There is an interesting article about “Breast Cancer and Diet”. You may want to look at that. There is an interesting discussion of the new mammography guidelines on this site

Written by Margaret Stenerson-Reynolds
12 2 2009