Invasive Breast Cancer Type Infiltrating Lobular or Ductal Carcinoma
Invasive breast cancer type can either be ductal or lobular. Both types are classified according to its origin, shape, location and aggressiveness. Ductal and lobular carcinomas are deadly because of their aggressive nature. Understanding the differences between these two specific types is crucial in the proper prevention and treatment of the disease.
Chemotherapy or surgery are usually the first options your doctor will recommend for infiltrating ductal or lobular carcinoma.
What is the ductal breast cancer type?
This infiltrating carcinoma is also known as IDC. The tumor starts to grow in the milk ducts and invades the nearby healthy fat tissues in your breasts. It is the most common carcinoma accounting for about 80% of diagnosed cases.
The cancerous cells in ID carcinoma look like either stars or rounded. The abnormal cells start in your milk ducts and invade the surrounding fatty or connective tissues.
The malignant tumor can travel to your lymph nodes. Because of its infiltrating nature, it can also spread to other organs of your body by entering your bloodstream. If your cancerous cells look like stars, you have a poorer chance of surviving the IDC type.
There are four other IDC types which are rare. These are:
Medullary ductal carcinoma accounts for 5% of cases. It is most common and most frequent in women in their late 40s to 50s. It is one of the rare types of tumor.
Tubular ductal carcinoma is also invasive but is not common. In fact, it accounts only for 1 to 2% of diagnosed cases. It typically occurs in women in their 50s or above. A woman diagnosed with the tubular type has a survival rate of 95%.
Mucinous ductal carcinoma is another rare but invasive ductal breast cancer type. Only 2 in 100 diagnosed cases are mucinous cancers.
Papillary ductal carcinoma commonly develops among women between the age of 50 and above. The cancerous cells resemble small fingers. Although it is an aggressive breast cancer type, this is treated the same way as the ductal carcinoma in-situ.
What is lobular carcinoma?
Infiltrating lobular carcinoma is also known as ILC. Cancerous cells begin in the milk glands of your breasts and just like the IDC type, the invasive lobular carcinoma also invades neighboring tissues and spreads to other parts of your body.
Infiltrating lobular carcinoma is less common than IDC as it accounts only for 5 - 10% of diagnosed cases. Any woman regardless of age can get ILC. However, among the different types of breast cancer, the lobular type is most typical among women between 45 and 55 years of age.
For the invasive type of tumor, a lump is not the general first symptom. This is regardless if it's ductal or lobular. Thus, it is important that you examine your breasts regularly for unusual hardening of the part above your nipple. What about swelling? If you notice swelling, get a check-up as soon as possible because it is one of the crucial inflammatory breast tumor symptoms. The inflammatory type needs to be treated immediately.
How is it treated?
Your doctor will consider surgery with radiation as treatment. You should be proactive when it comes to your treatment. Your doctor may know more but you should discuss all the breast cancer treatment options available with each other.
What causes the invasive type?
Aging is the most common factor among what causes breast tumor. However, increasing number of cases have been diagnosed among younger women especially the invasive or the infiltrating type. The lifestyle these women lead is believed to be the culprit.
How can invasive lobular or ductal carcinoma be prevented?
Both invasive lobular or ductal types can be prevented by deciding to eat like a Mediterranean. Choosing organic foods over the conventional ones is also another smart move towards prevention. Meat from animals grown conventionally have hormone residues, which can increase your risk for hormone-related cancers such as the invasive malignancies affecting your breasts. Olive Oil benefits includes prevention of this type of tumor.
The invasive lobular breast cancer type is harder to diagnose than the ductal type because the tumor can't be found by a mammogram. You have to be aware what signs to look out for. A lump is the usual first sign but it's not always present for the invasive ductal and lobular types. My co-worker who died of the invasive type in January 2012 noticed a tiny rash that worsened and never healed. It was too late when she was diagnosed.
