How long can you live with secondary breast cancer in the liver?
Background: Liver metastases from breast cancer are associated with a poor prognosis (median survival < 6 months). A subgroup of these patients with no dissemination in other organs may benefit from surgery.
What if breast cancer has spread to liver?
When breast cancer spreads to the liver, it often doesn’t cause symptoms. If a liver metastasis does cause symptoms, they can include pain or discomfort in the mid-section, fatigue and weakness, weight loss or poor appetite, fever, and others.
Can a breast cancer cell spread to the liver?
Secondary breast cancer in the liver happens when breast cancer cells spread to the liver. It can also be known as liver metastases. Secondary breast cancer in the liver is not the same as cancer that started in the liver.
How is secondary breast cancer treated in the liver?
Drugs are the main treatment for secondary breast cancer in the liver. However, sometimes other treatments are used. These can treat the cancer in the liver and help relieve symptoms, but will not treat cancer in other areas of the body, so may be useful for people whose secondary breast cancer only affects their liver.
When to have surgery for secondary breast cancer?
Surgery is more likely to be performed if the area of secondary breast cancer in the liver is very small, can be easily accessed by the surgeon and there’s no other secondary breast cancer elsewhere in the body. However, in most cases several areas of the liver are affected and surgery is not possible.
When to expect liver metastases from breast cancer?
Patients in whom liver metastases were found more than 1 year after resection of the primary breast cancer had a significantly better outcome than those with early (< 1 year) metastatic disease (P = .04).
What happens when breast cancer spreads to the liver?
Secondary breast cancer in the liver happens when breast cancer cells spread to the liver. It can also be known as liver metastases. Secondary breast cancer in the liver is not the same as cancer that started in the liver. 2. What’s my prognosis (outlook)?
Can you have secondary breast cancer in the liver?
Although surgery will not cure secondary breast cancer in the liver, occasionally it may be part of a plan of treatment. Surgery is more likely to be performed if the area of secondary breast cancer in the liver is very small, can be easily accessed by the surgeon and there’s no other secondary breast cancer elsewhere in the body.
Is there a cure for breast cancer in the liver?
These can treat the cancer in the liver and help relieve symptoms, but will not treat cancer in other areas of the body, so may be useful for people whose secondary breast cancer only affects their liver. Although surgery will not cure secondary breast cancer in the liver, occasionally it may be part of a plan of treatment.
Surgery is more likely to be performed if the area of secondary breast cancer in the liver is very small, can be easily accessed by the surgeon and there’s no other secondary breast cancer elsewhere in the body. However, in most cases several areas of the liver are affected and surgery is not possible.