Breast cancer mortality rate

Women are the most affected by breast cancer, just after skin cancer. As reported by the American cancer society, In the United States alone, it is expected that 13% of the female population is at high risk and could potentially develop breast cancer during their lifetime. Breast cancer is no doubt, a disease that has to be diagnosed and treated on-time, for effective recovery. Knowing about the breast cancer mortality rates can help determine what measures to take that ensure an effective treatment.

Take note of it that mortality rates classified under different categories are statistics gathered from previous cases of breast cancer. These numbers could be quite perplexing and do not predict about your cancer progression. Do consult your local healthcare provider and share your concern if you feel confused about your current health status. Without further ado, let’s take a look at the breast cancer statistics according to different categories.

5+ Breast cancer mortality rate by stage

The afferent stages of breast cancer tell us how far has cancer spread gone. In earlier stages, the tumor cells are confined to one location within the breast. However, in the late stages, the tumor cells start reaching other organs/tissues and start infecting them.

• Stage 0: This stage is deemed as a precancerous with no presence of tumor cells in the breast tissue.
• Stage 1: The tumor at this stage is within a specific area.
• Stage 2: The small tumor grows more than 2cm and also spreads to the lymph nodes near the breast.
• Stage 3: Cancer has already spread to various organs like lungs, skin, chest wall, and surrounding lymph nodes.
• Stage 4: This stage is named as metastatic cancer stage where cancer has even spread to every part of the body, even into the bones.

As the breast cancer stages progress, the chances of a successful recovery start to decline. However, the breast cancer mortality rate increases.

Year-based breast cancer mortality rate

These breast cancer statistics are collected according to a specific period. Let’s look at an example to get a grasp of the concept. Suppose, if the mortality rate of women with stage 4 breast cancer is 16% for a 10-year window, it means that patients diagnosed with stage-4 cancer could probably be life-threatening for 16% of the total number of cases. The cancer progression is not divided into the stages 0 to 4 we discussed earlier, rather it follows the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and results database (SEER) grouping that is as follows:

• Localized: The stage when the cancer is within the breast tissue.
• Regional: In this stage, cancer has spread to the lymph nodes present near the breast.
• Distant: Cancer has spread throughout the body and even into the bones.

Now let’s look at a quick review of the 5,10 and 30-year breast cancer mortality rate. It is of utmost importance to know that the mortality rates here cannot tell you what would be the outcomes. Each individual’s cancer has somewhat different outcomes which are not to be confused with these given statistics

• 5-year mortality rate: Regardless of the stage of breast cancer, the National cancer institute reports a 10% chance of mortality during 5 years. For localized breast cancer, the mortality rate is at its lowest which is 1%. If the cancer is staged as regional breast cancer, the mortality rate shoots up to 72% while in the case of distant breast cancer, the rate is the highest, around 83%.
• 10-year mortality rate: According to the American Cancer Society, the average breast cancer mortality rate is around 16%. A tumor smaller than 2cm usually has a mortality rate, less than the tumors bigger than 2cm in size.
• 30-year mortality rate: When we analyze the breast cancer mortality rate for 30 years using cancer staging, the affected diagnosed with an earlier stage of cancer show relatively low rates of mortality when sending in comparison with women having a later stage of diagnosed breast cancer

Breast cancer mortality rate by age

Unfortunately, aging is a natural risk factor for breast cancer. As we grow old, the chances one would develop breast cancer increase. This risk increases because each of our internal body functions starts declining in an age that makes conditions favorable for cancer to grow. Moreover, breast cancer mortality rate also increases with age. The average age at which a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer falls around 62 years. Surprisingly, women aged 84 and above have a fairly lower mortality rate than the age group ranging between 55 to 83 years.

Summary about: Breast Cancer Mortality Rates

All these mortality rates we discussed earlier cannot tell how cancer will affect you. How breast cancer progresses will directly affect the cancer mortality rate. Women with later stages of diagnosed breast cancer have a difficult time dealing with the disease and its appropriate treatment. Furthermore, the type of breast cancer diagnosed and how early is cancer treated also influences breast cancer mortality rates.

Breast cancer can be easily treated if identified on time. Screening examinations include mammographs and various diagnostic tools that help with early-on detection. With improving methods of diagnosis and treatment, breast cancer mortality rates are decreasing steadily. Yet, it is necessary to make sure to go for bi-annual visits to your doctor to keep your health status in check.

We hope you found this article on 5 Critical Stages of Breast Cancer Mortality Rates helpful. For more details on Breast Cancer Mortality Rates, click on the following articles:

• Breast Cancer Mortality Rate Stage 0
• Breast Cancer Mortality Rate Stage 1
• Breast Cancer Mortality Rate Stage 2
• Breast Cancer Mortality Rate Stage 3

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