What are the main symptoms of late stage breast cancer?

The symptoms of breast cancer in the early stage are not obvious, but the symptoms in the middle and late stages are more obvious. Many people want to know the symptoms of breast cancer in the middle and late stages. I hope the following experts’ introduction can help everyone. Let everyone know more about the symptoms of breast cancer in the middle and late stages .

1. Orange peel sign: Breast cancer invades the subcutaneous lymphatic vessels, and the obstruction of lymphatic return can cause skin edema, but the skin at the hair follicles will not swell, which can easily cause the breast surface to sag, just like orange peel. At the same time, the possibility of inflammatory breast cancer cannot be ruled out. Inflammatory breast cancer is often more widespread and may even affect the entire breast. This is a symptom of mid-to-late stage breast cancer.

2. Dimple sign: Symptoms of late-stage breast cancer. The appearance of dimples in the breast is a manifestation of breast suspensory ligament involvement. Because tumors in the deep and shallow parts of the breast invade the suspensory ligament, it will cause it to lose elasticity and contract, thereby pulling the skin to cause local depression, forming a dimple shape. If the tumor directly invades the skin, it will also cause skin depression. However, not all dimple signs are breast cancer. Chronic breast inflammation, fat necrosis, subcutaneous breast thrombophlebitis and postoperative scar contracture can also cause skin depression, which requires careful diagnosis.

3. Breast pain: Although breast pain can be seen in many breast diseases, it is not a common symptom of breast tumors. Regardless of whether it is benign or malignant, breast tumors are usually painless. In early breast cancer, pain is occasionally the only symptom, which may be dull pain or a pulling sensation, especially when lying on the side. Studies have shown that the detection rate of breast cancer will increase in postmenopausal women who have breast pain accompanied by thickening of the glands. Of course, there may be distension or tenderness when the tumor is accompanied by inflammation. If the advanced tumor invades the nerves or the axillary lymph nodes, it may compress or invade the brachial plexus and cause shoulder distension and pain.

4. Local swelling of the breast: When the breast lump develops to a certain extent, it will bulge on the skin surface, with or without pigmentation on the skin surface. This is a symptom of mid-to-late stage breast cancer.

5. Changes in the nipple and areola: Symptoms of late-stage breast cancer include the appearance of a tumor below the nipple, which can pull on the nipple and cause nipple deviation or nipple retraction; nipple invasion can cause nipple ulceration and erosion. Symptoms of eczematous breast cancer include nipple crusting, desquamation, erosion, and repeated non-healing.

6. Swollen axillary lymph nodes: Breast cancer gradually develops and can invade lymphatic vessels and metastasize to its local lymphatic drainage area. Among them, the most common site of lymphatic metastasis is the ipsilateral axillary lymph nodes. Lymph nodes often gradually increase in size from small to large, and the number of lymph nodes gradually increases from small to large. At first, the swollen lymph nodes can be pushed, and finally they fuse and become fixed. If the swollen lymph nodes invade and compress the axillary vein, they can often cause edema of the ipsilateral upper limb; if they invade the brachial plexus, they can cause shoulder pain. When checking the axillary lymph nodes, the affected upper limb should be relaxed as much as possible so that the top of the armpit can be palpated. If the swollen lymph nodes can be touched, it is necessary to pay attention to the number, size, texture, mobility and surface condition of the lymph nodes to distinguish them from inflammation and tuberculosis.

The above content is the symptoms of middle and late stage breast cancer introduced by experts. Please pay attention to it. I hope it will be helpful to you. If you have other questions about the symptoms of middle and late stage breast cancer, please consult online experts and they will give you detailed answers.