What are the metastatic symptoms of late stage breast cancer

I believe everyone is aware of the harm that breast cancer brings to patients. If this disease is not treated in time, it is likely to cause the emergence of a variety of metastatic symptoms, posing a life-threatening risk to patients. So what are the symptoms of late-stage breast cancer metastasis? Please see the detailed introduction below, I hope it will be helpful to you.

1. Symptoms of bone metastasis of breast cancer: It is also a common metastasis symptom of breast cancer. Breast cancer is very prone to bone metastasis. In the past, some patients even had pathological fractures as the first symptom of breast cancer. Multiple bone metastasis is common clinically. 60% of uncured breast cancer patients will have bone metastasis. Breast cancer bone metastasis is mainly hematogenous. The thoracic and lumbar vertebrae and pelvis are the most likely sites for breast cancer bone metastasis, with an incidence of about 64.7% and 41.2%, followed by the ribs (most common in the vicinity of the cancer), skin bones, femurs, and skulls. In addition, the metastasis rate of the sternum is the lowest, about 3.5%.

Symptoms of breast cancer bone metastasis: Mild, intermittent bone pain will occur in the early stage of bone metastasis, gradually developing into persistent bone pain, progressively aggravated, and tenderness. If the vertebral body is affected, there will be tenderness and percussion pain in the spinous process of the spine; the pain site can be fixed or not fixed, especially severe at night, and the pain varies. The pain causes muscle tension and joint movement to be restricted, causing the patient to be in a passive position; if the location of the bone metastasis is relatively superficial, or the bone expands and deforms over time, local swelling will occur.

2. Symptoms of pleural metastasis of breast cancer: Breast cancer can metastasize to the pleura through blood or local invasion, or cause pleural metastasis after lung metastasis penetrates into the pleural cavity. When breast cancer patients have pleural metastasis, they mainly show symptoms such as chest tightness, chest pain, shortness of breath, and cough. Once the above symptoms occur, patients can undergo puncture to draw bloody pleural effusion for a clear diagnosis. Active treatment is the key.

3. Symptoms of brain metastasis of breast cancer: Although the incidence of brain metastasis of breast cancer in uncured breast cancer patients is only 15%, brain metastasis is a fatal complication of breast cancer, seriously threatening the patient's life and is one of the reasons for the patient's accelerated death. Brain metastasis of breast cancer mainly occurs through blood metastasis.

Brain metastasis from breast cancer is often multifocal, and the metastatic sites are often located in important functional areas such as the frontal lobe and parietal lobe. The main clinical manifestations include cerebral edema and intracranial hypertension, neurological symptoms such as headache, vomiting, decreased vision, convulsions, limb movement disorders, and even coma, and weakening or disappearance of physiological reflexes of the nervous system and induction of pathological reflexes.

4. Symptoms of liver metastasis of breast cancer: The liver is one of the most common sites of breast cancer metastasis. About 60% of uncured breast cancer patients will have liver metastasis, which makes the treatment of patients difficult and is often the main reason for the failure of late-stage breast cancer treatment. Liver metastasis is mainly blood-borne metastasis and lymphatic metastasis, especially blood-borne metastasis.

The clinical manifestations of breast cancer liver metastasis are very similar to those of primary liver cancer and should be distinguished. When the following symptoms appear, you should be alert to the possibility of breast cancer liver metastasis. There are no obvious symptoms in the early stages of breast cancer liver metastasis, but later there will gradually be distension and discomfort in the upper abdomen or liver area, followed by abdominal distension, jaundice, loss of appetite, fatigue, weight loss, severe pain in the liver area, fever, etc.

5. Symptoms of lung metastasis of breast cancer: The lung is the most common site of metastasis of breast cancer. Seventy percent of uncured breast cancer patients have lung metastasis. Lung metastasis of breast cancer can be hematogenous metastasis, lymphatic metastasis or direct invasion.

Symptoms of breast cancer lung metastasis vary according to the location of metastasis. Common main symptoms include cough, sputum, hemoptysis, dyspnea, fever, etc. Specific symptoms include: if the metastatic lesion appears in the lung interstitium, there are often no obvious symptoms when it is an isolated nodule in the early stage, and it can be found through imaging examination; if the metastatic lesion of breast cancer is located in the bronchial endothelium, the cough symptom will be more obvious, and obstructive pneumonia or atelectasis may also occur; if carcinomatous lymphangitis of the lung occurs, dyspnea, cough with a lot of sputum, purple and chest pain can be seen, and there may be weakened lung breath sounds, etc.

If breast cancer metastasizes to the lungs and simultaneously metastasizes to the mediastinum, symptoms of hoarseness, superior vena cava compression syndrome, diaphragmatic paralysis, and esophageal and tracheal compression may occur. Occasionally, acute pulmonary embolism caused by the tumor may manifest as progressive dyspnea.

In the above content, we mainly introduced the symptoms of late-stage metastasis of breast cancer. However, if you want to comprehensively fight breast cancer, you must learn more about breast cancer so that you can effectively prevent it in your daily life. When the disease attacks, you can discover it in time and receive timely treatment. I wish you a speedy recovery.