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Medical Video: Breast Cancer Survivor Stories
Breast cancer is categorized by a stage that describes the condition of the disease and life expectancy for patients. Stage 4 cancer means the cancer has spread to other organs and tissues. When cancer reaches stage 4, the 5-year life expectancy reaches only around 22%.
Healing stage 4 breast cancer is generally considered impossible. But in some patients, stage 4 breast cancer can be treated and held for several years. Some patients experience total remission from the disease. The reason why some stage 4 patients appear to be cancer free cannot be explained. However, even though breast cancer is in remission, the disease can still return.
Remission and recurrence
Remission does not mean recovery. When the cancer is in remission, it means there are no signs of the disease seen by the doctor. However, there is still an opportunity for diseases found in the body, only too small to be detected. For some patients, remission can mean total freedom from the disease. But there is no 100% certainty that the disease will not return.
But there is still hope. Continuation of chemotherapy and other treatments can help stage 4 cancer patients continue to live without the return of the disease. Some therapies can also extend the time before relapse occurs again. This optimism can increase the number of surviving stage 4 patients.
Recurrence is not a term cancer patients want to hear. This means the disease has returned after being undetected for some time. Cancer can return to the same place aka local recurrence. Regional recurrence is a cancer that reappears in the lymph gland near the tumor area first to grow.
When new cancers appear
Cancer is unpredictable and can be frustrating. You can be treated with a combination of surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. This comprehensive treatment plan can affect the surrounding breast tissue and lymph glands.
However, cancer can appear on other organs, such as the liver. If cancer cells in the liver are identified with the same type that forms in breast tissue, this means that your breast cancer is metastatic. Even though a new tumor is growing in the liver, you still have stage 4 breast cancer.
If cancer cells in the liver are different from breast cancer cells, then you have 2 different types of cancer.
If your cancer has recurrence
Stage 4 breast cancer recurrence can be discouraging. Treatment provides unpleasant side effects, and it is not known whether the disease will respond to the therapeutic therapy.
If you experience recurrence and feel discouraged, you can join the support community. You will get useful tips about treatment. You will also get inspiration from other patient stories. Talking with your doctor about symptoms of depression or other things related to recurrence can also help.
With the return of stage 4 breast cancer, you may be able to do a clinical trial to try a new procedure or therapy. Clinical trials do not promise success, but you can try new drugs before the drug is sold publicly.
Healthy living
Although the return of stage 4 breast cancer can complicate your condition, remember that cancer treatment develops every year. People who have stage 4 breast cancer live longer than before. You cannot guarantee remission or prevent recurrence in total. However, if you are proactive to your health, you can live longer than you imagined with stage 4 breast cancer.
Hello Health Group does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.
