OTHER BREAST CANCERS 

Besides carcinomas, there are other, less common types of breast cancer

Inflammatory breast cancer

This is a rare type comprising only 1-3% of all breast cancer diagnostics. Often there is no nodule inside the breast, but, instead, inflammatory changes similar to those seen during an infection. The skin can become red, lose color or dimpled (thick, uneven with small pits, like in an orange peel). The apparent infection, however, does NOT improve with antibiotics.  This type of cancer appears when the tumor cells multiply in fine layers blocking the lymph nodes in the skin and make the breast inflamed, warm, red and swollen. The diagnosis is done through a skin biopsy looking for abnormal cells.  Inflammatory breast cancer is more aggressive and more difficult to treat than ductal or lobular invasive carcinomas. A woman that detects this kind of changes should immediately see a doctor.

Paget’s disease of the breast

Another rare cancer (1% of all cases).

It normally appears associated to ductal carcinomas (invasive or in situ), and because of that it can be discovered together with a nodule.

The disease develops initially in the breast duct, spreading to the nipple and the aureole (the dark ring around it). It starts with red skin that can become flakey, thick, itchy, or even bleed.

Because of these symptoms it is often confused with a benign skin condition. The cancer, however, can also cause nipple flattening or/and nipple discharge.

Diagnosis is normally done by nipple biopsy, but analyses of the discharge can also be done.