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Topic: triple negative and staging

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Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 28
  • Posted on: May 8, 2008 05:31 pm
janekhaldy wrote:

I find it strange that a triple negative diagnosis does not enter into staging breast cancer, at least that is what my onc said. Does anyone have any imput on this matter?


Dx 7/31/2007, IDC, 2cm, Stage IIb, Grade 2, 1/12 nodes, ER-/PR-, HER2-
Posts 1 - 10 (10 total)
FloridaLady…
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 703
May 9, 2008 07:55 am FloridaLady wrote:

I think he means is...they just treat it more aggressively upfront. I suprised they have you at IIb with a node tested positive.  I though that made IIIb?

Flalady

trip neg stageIV spread to IBC & 7 recur's, Treat Alt & Conv
jdash
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 922
May 9, 2008 10:03 am jdash wrote:

if a node tests positive that would not make you stage 111b

they stage by the size of the tumor and the number of nodes that are positive-  being triple negative does not affect what stage you are in

i was triple negative twice  first time was stage 1  no nodes  icm tumor  that was 11 yrs ago

then 2 yrs ago i was redx stage 3

i was trip neg again but the tumor was large and there were several nodes involved so it was stage 3   nothing to do with trip neg

life is not measured by the breaths we take but the moments that take our breath away....
Dx 4/22/2006, IDC, , Stage IIIb, Grade 3, ER-/PR-, HER2-
FloridaLady…
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 703
May 9, 2008 12:49 pm, edited May 9, 2008 08:14 PM by FloridaLady FloridaLady wrote:

 I had node involvement at dx I was IIIb and spread to skin than stage IV now only in chset wall back to stage III by one doctors standards and still stage IV by the other.

(I should say after my 7th recurrence they now consider me stage IV.)

Flalady

trip neg stageIV spread to IBC & 7 recur's, Treat Alt & Conv
wishiwere
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 2069
May 9, 2008 01:02 pm wishiwere wrote:

According to this site it says:

Stage II

This stage describes invasive breast cancer in which:

  • The tumor measures at least two centimeters, but not more than five centimeters, OR
  • Cancer has spread to the lymph nodes under the arm on the same side as the breast cancer. Affected lymph nodes have not yet stuck to one another or to the surrounding tissues, a sign that the cancer has not yet advanced to stage III. (The tumor in the breast can be any size.)
wishiwere
Dx 9/21/2007, ILC, 1cm, Stage I, Grade 2, 0/4 nodes, ER+/PR+, HER2-
nosurrender…
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 4771
May 9, 2008 01:33 pm nosurrender wrote:

Tripleneg doesn't enter into staging because it is not a unit of measurement.

When they stage a cancer they study the size of the tumor, the type of tumor, whether or not nodes were involved, and how fast the tumor divided.

For example, they could see a 2 centimeter tumor that is ductal cancer, no nodes, and the grade or rate of cell division was medium grade.

They then check to see if it is estrogen and progesterone positive or negative and if it is positive for the Her2nue oncogene.

While these things are important in the the treatment and chemo choices, they are not part of the staging.

I hope this helps.

g 

nosurrenderbreastcancerhelp.com
Sadie-Rose
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 217
May 9, 2008 05:39 pm Sadie-Rose wrote:

Hi All,

Here's some information about staging for state II and III=

  • Stage II is one of the following:
    • The tumor is no more than 2 centimeters (three-quarters of an inch) across. The cancer has spread to the lymph nodes under the arm.
    • The tumor is between 2 and 5 centimeters (three-quarters of an inch to 2 inches). The cancer has not spread to the lymph nodes under the arm.
    • The tumor is between 2 and 5 centimeters (three-quarters of an inch to 2 inches). The cancer has spread to the lymph nodes under the arm
    • The tumor is larger than 5 centimeters (2 inches). The cancer has not spread to the lymph nodes under the arm.

  • Stage III is locally advanced cancer. It is divided into Stage IIIA, IIIB, and IIIC.
    • Stage IIIA is one of the following:
      • The tumor is no more than 5 centimeters (2 inches) across. The cancer has spread to underarm lymph nodes that are attached to each other or to other structures. Or the cancer may have spread to lymph nodes behind the breastbone.
      • The tumor is more than 5 centimeters across. The cancer has spread to underarm lymph nodes that are either alone or attached to each other or to other structures. Or the cancer may have spread to lymph nodes behind the breastbone.

    • Stage IIIB is a tumor of any size that has grown into the chest wall or the skin of the breast. It may be associated with swelling of the breast or with nodules (lumps) in the breast skin.
      • The cancer may have spread to lymph nodes under the arm.
      • The cancer may have spread to underarm lymph nodes that are attached to each other or other structures. Or the cancer may have spread to lymph nodes behind the breastbone.
      • Inflammatory breast cancer is a rare type of breast cancer. The breast looks red and swollen because cancer cells block the lymph vessels in the skin of the breast. When a doctor diagnoses inflammatory breast cancer, it is at least Stage IIIB, but it could be more advanced.

    • Stage IIIC is a tumor of any size. It has spread in one of the following ways:
      • The cancer has spread to the lymph nodes behind the breastbone and under the arm.
      • The cancer has spread to the lymph nodes above or below the collarbone.

      Sadie

    • Dx 9/2003, IDC, 3cm, Stage II, Grade 3, 1/14 nodes, ER-/PR-, HER2-
    Sadie-Rose
    Joined: Sep 2007
    Posts: 217
    May 9, 2008 05:40 pm Sadie-Rose wrote:

    Hi All,

    Here's some information about staging for state II and III=

  • Stage II is one of the following:
    • The tumor is no more than 2 centimeters (three-quarters of an inch) across. The cancer has spread to the lymph nodes under the arm.
    • The tumor is between 2 and 5 centimeters (three-quarters of an inch to 2 inches). The cancer has not spread to the lymph nodes under the arm.
    • The tumor is between 2 and 5 centimeters (three-quarters of an inch to 2 inches). The cancer has spread to the lymph nodes under the arm
    • The tumor is larger than 5 centimeters (2 inches). The cancer has not spread to the lymph nodes under the arm.

  • Stage III is locally advanced cancer. It is divided into Stage IIIA, IIIB, and IIIC.
    • Stage IIIA is one of the following:
      • The tumor is no more than 5 centimeters (2 inches) across. The cancer has spread to underarm lymph nodes that are attached to each other or to other structures. Or the cancer may have spread to lymph nodes behind the breastbone.
      • The tumor is more than 5 centimeters across. The cancer has spread to underarm lymph nodes that are either alone or attached to each other or to other structures. Or the cancer may have spread to lymph nodes behind the breastbone.

    • Stage IIIB is a tumor of any size that has grown into the chest wall or the skin of the breast. It may be associated with swelling of the breast or with nodules (lumps) in the breast skin.
      • The cancer may have spread to lymph nodes under the arm.
      • The cancer may have spread to underarm lymph nodes that are attached to each other or other structures. Or the cancer may have spread to lymph nodes behind the breastbone.
      • Inflammatory breast cancer is a rare type of breast cancer. The breast looks red and swollen because cancer cells block the lymph vessels in the skin of the breast. When a doctor diagnoses inflammatory breast cancer, it is at least Stage IIIB, but it could be more advanced.

    • Stage IIIC is a tumor of any size. It has spread in one of the following ways:
      • The cancer has spread to the lymph nodes behind the breastbone and under the arm.
      • The cancer has spread to the lymph nodes above or below the collarbone.

      Sadie

    • Dx 9/2003, IDC, 3cm, Stage II, Grade 3, 1/14 nodes, ER-/PR-, HER2-
    cdean
    Joined: Mar 2008
    Posts: 46
    May 10, 2008 11:11 am cdean wrote:

    Is being triple negative a good thing or a bad thing or does it only change the cocktail of chemo?

    Cathy


    Dx 3/28/2008, IDC, 2cm, Grade 3, 6/35 nodes, ER-/PR-, HER2-
    Wink333
    Joined: Feb 2008
    Posts: 116
    May 10, 2008 11:57 am Wink333 wrote:

    Cathy,

    Being triple negative can be a good thing and a bad thing. It is my understanding that triple negative cancers are more aggressive but this makes them possibly more susceptible to the chemo and hopefully easier to cure. The recurrence rate for trip negs is higher than er/pr+ for the first 5 years but then drops to about equal. This rate could be higher because there is not a drug like tamoxen to help us after chemo. If we make it thru the first 3 - 5 years without recurrence we are less likely to have a recurrence 10 years down the road than say er+ cancer. That is because trip neg is more aggressive and faster growing. These are the things my doctors have told me so far about being triple negative.

    So good and bad go along with having any type of bc as far as I can see.  I just wish none of us had any type of bc.

    Wink 

    Wink333
    Dx 2/28/2007, 2cm, Stage IIIc, Grade 3, 11/25 nodes, ER-/PR-, HER2-
    ravdeb
    Joined: Oct 2005
    Posts: 5920
    May 10, 2008 11:58 am ravdeb wrote:

    My oncs didn't stage me because it was triple neg with no node involvement and my tumor was 2 cm..neither here nor there. But, the reason was because they were treating it as though it were node positive because of the aggressiveness of the tumor (grade 3) and because they wanted to hit it hard. So, they said the staging was not helpful. Staging is done for treatment options.

    There are good and bad things about triple negative. If it doesn't recur or spread during the first 5 years (some say first 3 years) the risk of it recurring or spreading goes way down. Some even say that if there is no sign of it after 8 years, one can consider it cured.

    The bad thing is that we only have chemo as our weapon and if chemo doesn't work, then we have no other choices. Also, it is generally a very aggressive tumor that is usually grade 3.

    IDC, 2cm, ER/PR Neg, Her2 neg, Grade 3, Node neg

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