Understanding Breast Cancer: Stages, Symptoms, and Treatment
The American Joint Committee on Cancer breast cancer classification system is used to determine the stage of breast cancer, which helps healthcare providers make treatment decisions and assess survival rates. The stages range from 0 to 4, with higher stages indicating more advanced cancer. Treatment options become more aggressive as the stage advances, and the prognosis worsens. Stage 0 is a precancerous growth that may not require treatment, while stage 4 is metastatic breast cancer, which is considered incurable. Survival rates vary depending on the stage, with localized breast cancer having a 99% five-year survival rate, regional breast cancer having an 86% five-year survival rate, and distant breast cancer having a 31% five-year survival rate.