There are several significant differences between IBC and other types of breast cancer. Inflammatory breast cancer:
- Does not cause a defined “bump” in the breast tissue; instead, the primary symptoms are swelling and inflammation of the breast
- Does not always show up on a mammogram; women who develop IBC often have dense breast tissue that complicates the imaging process
- Tends to grow very quickly; it is always classified as either stage 3 or stage 4 breast cancer at the time of diagnosis
Causes of Inflammatory Breast Cancer
Inflammatory breast cancer occurs when:
- Cancerous cells develop in a milk duct and multiply rapidly
- The cells build up and block the lymph vessels in the breast skin, hindering lymphatic drainage out of the breast
- The cancer cells spread, or metastasize, from the lymph vessels to the lymph nodes, skin and other organs
Symptoms of Inflammatory Breast Cancer
A patient with inflammatory breast cancer may develop symptoms quickly, within just 3-6 months. Symptoms may include:
- A reddish or purplish color or rash spread over one-third of the breast
- Peau d’orange, a condition which causes pitting, thickening or dimpling of the breast skin and appears like an orange peel
- Breast pain, swelling, tenderness, burning or itching
- An inverted nipple
- Swollen lymph nodes under the arm or near the collarbone
- An increase in the size of one breast
Diagnosing Inflammatory Breast Cancer
Inflammatory breast cancer can be harder to diagnose than other cancers because a lump usually does not form in the breast.
Performing a physical examination and other tests will help your doctor rule out other issues, such as infection. To confirm a diagnosis of IBC, one or more of the following diagnostic procedures and tests may be performed:
- A biopsy
- An ultrasound
- Breast MRI
- Other types of scans, such as a PET scan or CT scan
Treatments for Inflammatory Breast Cancer
At Tampa General Hospital, we take a patient-based approach to care. This means that we don’t simply design a treatment plan based on the patient’s diagnosis; we take into account the patient’s personal preferences (such as the ability to breastfeed after treatment) to enhance each patient’s quality of life.
The state-of-the-art treatments we offer for IBC include:
- Chemotherapy
- Immunotherapy
- Radiation therapy
- Hormone therapy
- Integrative medicine services
- Minimally invasive or robotic surgery to remove some or all of the affected breast
