How Long Does It Take Breast Cancer To Spread?

Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko under Pexels License 

How Long Does It Take for Breast Cancer to Spread?

Are you aware of the fact that on average, a woman finds out that she has breast cancer every two minutes and one woman dies of this disease every 13 minutes? Knowing this, it’s no wonder why breast cancer has become the second leading cause of cancer death among females in the United States. In fact, each year, some 40,500 women are estimated to die of breast cancer.

The aggressive nature of breast cancer is such that if a woman finds out that she has a lump in her breast, it’s only normal for her to ask, “How long does it take for breast cancer to spread?”

Breast Cancer Car Donations gives you straight answers to this question so you can have a glimpse of the long-term outlook for patients diagnosed with this deadly disease.

The Growth Rate

Although it’s difficult to determine the exact time when a breast cancer started up to the time a woman was diagnosed with the disease, it’s likely that tumors had already begun to develop in her breasts five years before the disease was detected. Generally speaking, breast cancer’s growth rate can be variable.

Furthermore, experts say a series of alterations in the patient’s DNA that amounts to cancer can sometimes take place over a lifetime. In fact, it could sometimes take years before a cancer cell divides 30 times on average to form a mass that becomes detectable in the genes or through a scan. It’s important to note that the proportion of cancer cells in the active cell cycle of breast cancer is lower compared to those of other cancer types.

By looking at the time that it takes for a tumor to double in size, you’ll get to envision how fast it grows. In a study conducted in 2016, the growth rate was monitored through ultrasounds conducted between breast cancer diagnosis and surgery over a period of 31 days. It was observed that a tumor increased from 1.47 cm to 1.56 cm in diameter in that span of time.

Factors that Influence Breast Cancer’s Chances of Spreading

The time it takes for breast cancer to spread to other organs of the body is actually hard to determine. This depends on the following factors:

1. Breast Cancer Type

There are two types of breast cancer—invasive (spreads to the surrounding connective tissue, lymph nodes, and other organs) or noninvasive (doesn’t spread beyond the lobules and ducts).

2. Grade

The grading of breast cancer is based on how much the cancer cells resemble normal breast cells. Grade 1 is slow-growing while Grade 3 is fast-growing. The higher the grade, the more likely the cancer will grow and spread to other parts of your body.

3. Stage

This refers to the extent of the cancer’s progression and is an important factor in determining the appropriate treatment plan. Stage 0 is noninvasive with cancer cells localized in the ducts and lobules. Stage 1 is invasive, but the tumor is at its primary state. At Stage 2, the tumors are larger and the cancer may have already spread to the lymph nodes. Stage 3 is invasive with larger tumors and the cancer has already reached several lymph nodes. Stage 4 breast cancer means it has already spread to other areas of the patient’s body.

4. Other Factors

Breast cancer may spread within a year depending on the patient’s age at diagnosis, family history of breast cancer, hormone status, previous history of cancer, and exposure to cigarettes, pollution, and alcohol.

Do You Have an Unwanted Vehicle?

We at Breast Cancer Car Donations along with our IRS-certified 501(c)3 nonprofit partners work tirelessly to provide comprehensive breast health services to communities throughout the United States. Through vehicle donations, our charity partners are able to sustain their critical programs that are focused on breast cancer research, screening, diagnosis, and treatment.

If you want to join the battle against breast cancer, all you have to do is donate an unwanted vehicle that you’ve been planning to dispose of anyway.

Once you donate your car, truck, van, or any other type of vehicle to Breast Cancer Car Donations, you’ll be impacting the lives of individuals and families affected by breast cancer in your local area.

You will also reap meaningful rewards for your charitable contribution including a top tax deduction in the next tax season. Moreover, you’ll get to enjoy our quick and convenient donation process as well as our free pickup and towing services.

To get started, simply fill out our online donation form or dial 866-540-5069. Tell us a few details about yourself and the vehicle you’re donating.

Do you want to know more about our vehicle donation program and how it works? You can send us a message online or check out our FAQs page. We accept vehicle donations anywhere in the United States since we have car donation programs in all 50 states.

Photo by Jacob Moore under Pexels License

Boost Breast Cancer Patients’ Hopes with Your Car Donation

If you’re ready to boost the breast cancer patients’ hopes of surviving the disease, call us at 866-540-5069 to get started with your car donation!

Last Updated: March 10th, 2023