The breast cancer without warning signs
(originally written for Best Ever You Magazine by Dr. Lou Jacobs. May 2010)

Inflammatory Breast Cancer (IBC) is a rather uncommon but very aggressive form of breast cancer that presents without the presence of a lump. IBC occurs in 1-5% of breast cancers in the U.S.. Women in their late 50’s and early 60’s are most commonly affected. The prognosis for people with IBC is quite poor with a 5 year survival rate between 25% – 50%.

True Story

Our mother was an athletic marathon runner for much of her life. Mum never smoked and generally ate very well. She had a degree in health education. She was very much a down to earth, organic health nut. In her mid to late fifties she began to gain a bit of weight but was still active. She received routine mammograms and examined her breasts regularly as instructed. Last August she noticed that the skin around the nipple of her right breast was odd looking. This was a week or two before her yearly mammogram. She went to the doctor, they gave her antibiotics to rule out mastitis and the inflammation did not go away. They did a biopsy and diagnosed her with Stage IIIB inflammatory breast cancer. After further imaging she was diagnosed with stage IV IBC. Our mother died 8 months after her diagnosis, she was 61. As knowledgeable as she was about breast cancer, she did not know about IBC. Knowledge of presenting signs may save your life.

Risk Factors

The risk factors for IBC are being a woman, being African American and your age. Men rarely get IBC although it is not impossible. For reasons that are still unknown, IBC is more common in African American women.

Symptoms & Diagnosis

Lumps in the breast are uncommon with IBC. In fact IBC often masquerades as mastitis, or inflammation of the breast. If mastitis is present, antibiotics will usually take care of the inflammation. With IBC the affected breast will often look red or inflamed, it may feel warm. One presenting symptom around the nipple is called “Peau d’ orange” or an orange peel appearance. Sometimes the nipple may be flattened out or inverted. The affected breast may also be itchy or painful to the touch. Because there is no lump, IBC is often missed with ultrasound or mammography. Diagnoses are most commonly made by biopsy or by PET scan.

Treatment & Prognosis

Like with other cancers, early detection is helpful for successful treatment. Treatment often involves chemotherapy, surgery, radiation and other standard treatments for cancer. The medication types, doses, frequency and overall order of the treatments may vary but will often be customized for the individual needs of a patient. Prognosis is poor with the five year survival rate being between 25% -50%.

Information on IBC

An internet search will put you in contact with local as well as national Inflammatory Breast Cancer organizations. In our quest to learn more we discovered Massimo Cristofanilli, M.D., F.A.C.P at Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, Pa. Dr. Cristofanilli is one of the leading experts in the world on IBC and his office may be reached at 1-888-369-2427. Please visit www.eraseibc.com