Invasive Breast Cancers

Invasive cancer cells have spread outside the lobules or ducts and possibly to the lymph nodes. Surgery is a treatment option if the breast cancer has not spread to areas beyond the breast tissue. If breast cancer spreads (metastasizes), it typically goes to the lymph nodes, bones, lungs, liver, or brain.⁷

Invasive ductal carcinoma starts in the milk ducts. Symptoms include a hard lump that is felt or found on breast imaging.⁷⁴ About 75 percent of all invasive breast cancer is IDC.³ Your treatment will be based on the stage or the spread of the cancer.

Invasive Lobular Carcinoma starts in the milk-producing glands (lobules) of the breast. The symptoms include an abnormal feeling breast. This is usually felt as a thickening rather than a hard lump. ILC is not easily seen with a mammogram.

About 10 percent of female breast cancer is ILC.⁸²

Inflammatory breast cancer starts in the breast tissue and blocks the lymph vessels. Symptoms include a swollen and warm breast. The breast looks red or orange or pitted like an orange peel. IBC is rare. Less than 1 percent of invasive breast cancer is IBC.³ It is very aggressive and more likely to come back (reoccur) than other types of breast cancer.

Breast cancer in men is rare. Less than 1 percent of all breast cancers occur in men. The lifetime risk of breast cancer for men is about 1 in 1,000.¹² Men who have a BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation have an increased risk of cancers, including breast, prostate, and pancreatic cancers.⁴⁶ Invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC) is the most common type of male breast cancer. It may present as a lump, often around the nipple.¹²

Learn more at the website of the National Cancer Institute.