Research

I am writing a book in which the main female character is diagnosed with breast cancer, has surgery, chemo and is clear for some years then has a recurrance or mets. What is the most common form in which the cancer returns and what is the progression? What kind of chance is there to cure the recurrance?

Thanks

[riley180]

The most common metastasis involves bone involvement. Less common are liver, lung, and brain. If the patient received breast conservation instead of mastectomy, another recurrence is one involving the remaining breast tissue.

The local recurrence can receive an operation, and cure rate of 70% can be achieved at 10 years if complete removal of tumor is possible.

Bone metastases are generally incurable, but rarely cause deaths, some may even die of other diseases or aging before fatal progression of disease. Surgical resection for lesions in the liver,lung, and brain are not routine. For these patients, the goal is improvement in symptoms and quality of life. There are occasional complete responses with chemotherapy nd prolonged survival, but this is in the order of 5% or less.