"The Silent Killer: Inflammatory Breast Cancer" is a 6-minute
video clip from a Seattle news program that has been making its
way around the Internet. It presents some important information
about inflammatory breast cancer (IBC), a very serious cancer
that many women have never heard about. While the information
in the video is basically sound, it has had the unfortunate unintended
effect of leaving many women feeling alarmed and helpless against
this condition.
Here are some essential facts about inflammatory breast cancer
and what to do if you develop any suspicious symptoms.
Inflammatory breast cancer is very fast-growing and aggressive.
It is also very rare - less than 5 % of all breast cancer cases,
and perhaps only 1%. It occurs so infrequently that many breast
care specialists have never met a patient who has it.
Inflammatory breast cancer does not typically form a lump inside
the breast. Instead, the first symptoms are usually clearly visible
on the breast, and they are often similar to the symptoms of relatively
harmless insect bites, skin conditions, or breast infections that
have no relation to cancer.
Be alert for
Even though the chances of having a rare disease
like inflammatory breast cancer are extremely small, symptoms like
these should never be ignored. A medical evaluation is necessary
to rule out more common (and less serious) causes like simple breast
infection, as well as other serious problems like Paget's Disease
of the breast (see
www.center4research.org/pagets.html).
What to Do
If you have symptoms that persist for more than a few days, well-respected
breast surgeon Dr. Susan Love recommends antibiotics and close
watching for two weeks. If the problem is caused by a bacterial
infection, the medication should result in noticeable improvement
in 10-14 days. If the problem is caused by a viral infection,
it won't respond to the antibiotic so it will probably either
a) get significantly worse or b) run its course and get much better
in 10-14 days. Any of these outcomes is good news. On the other
hand, if there is no change in the symptoms within 10 to 14 days
with antibiotic treatment, you need to make an appointment with
a breast specialist for a biopsy as soon as possible.
Diagnosis and Treatment
The changes that lead to a diagnosis of inflammatory breast cancer
usually occur over a period of only a few weeks. It is likely
that it has already spread to other parts of the body before any
symptoms appear.
Mammograms are not usually effective in detecting inflammatory
breast cancer. Even though an MRI exam might provide earlier diagnosis,
this is not a very realistic option for women without symptoms.
A biopsy is needed for an accurate diagnosis.
Treatment is similar to the treatment for other invasive breast
cancers - including chemotherapy, surgery, radiation, and hormonal
therapy. About half of all women with this type of breast cancer
survive 5 years or longer, which is less than other types of breast
cancer.
How Worried Should Women Be?
Inflammatory breast cancer is a rare disease, so the chances of
your getting it is quite small. Awareness of what symptoms to
look for and of how to go about having those symptoms evaluated
is the most important defense against this and any disease.
The original KOMO TV news segment and two follow-up features can
be viewed at:
http://www.komotv.com/ibc/
Additional information about IBC can be found at:
