Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsHow Tumors ChangeBiopsiesImaging StudiesTumor Marker TestsWaiting for ResultsNext in Metastatic Breast Cancer Guide GuideMetastatic Breast Cancer Prognosis
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
How Tumors Change
Biopsies
Imaging Studies
Tumor Marker Tests
Waiting for Results
Next in Metastatic Breast Cancer Guide Guide
Tumors can change over time, breast cancer treatments may work better for some people than others, and treatment can affect your cancer differently at different times throughout your disease course. Your oncologist will work diligently to stay on top of your response to treatment to make sure that your regimen is as effective as it can be.
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How Tumors Can Change
Cancer cells often change to evade the immune system. With breast cancer,receptor statuscan change too. For example, a tumor may have been estrogen-sensitive when you were first diagnosed, but it may be estrogen receptor-negative when it reappears in your lung. A tumor may beHER2-positive when first diagnosed, but HER2-negative late.
Tumor heterogenicity is another important point of consideration. Rather than being a mass of all identical cells, different parts of a tumor may have different characteristics than others. Sometimes one portion of a tumor overexpresses HER2, while another section of a tumor, or metastasis in a different location, does not.
Changes in tumors account for the resistance to treatments such ashormonal therapies,targeted therapies, andchemotherapythat sometimes happen over time.
Repeat biopsies aren’t always done, but they can be if your healthcare provider thinks that the characteristics of your tumor may be different than when you were diagnosed.
Getting a Biopsy: How to Prepare
The imaging scans your healthcare provider recommends will depend on many factors, including the location of your tumors and the treatments used.
Common tests include:
Limitations
While imaging tests are an important part of the monitoring process, they have limitations.
Some important issues to be aware of:
Tumor marker tests are not perfect. Not all breast cancers cause elevations in biomarkers, and these biomarkers can be elevated due to a condition other than cancer.
These tests are rarely used alone to monitor the progress of breast cancer and are most helpful when the levels are followed over time.
Tumor markers your healthcare provider may measure include:
Waiting for Test Results
Most people will feel some level of anxiety while waiting for the results of scans or laboratory tests. With metastatic breast cancer, you’ll have many test results to await.
You’re not alone if your mind conjures up and fixates on potential scenarios of what the results may be—and more importantly, what they could mean.
You can do several things to cope during these waiting periods:
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Reducing Anxiety While Waiting for Cancer Test Results
4 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Lindström LS, Karlsson E, Wilking UM, et al.Clinically used breast cancer markers such as estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 are unstable throughout tumor progression. J Clin Oncol. 2012;30(21):2601-8. doi:10.1200/JCO.2011.37.2482Sharma M, Gogia A, Deo SSV, Mathur S.Role of rebiopsy in metastatic breast cancer at progression. Curr Probl Cancer. 2018; doi:10.1016/j.currproblcancer.2018.12.001Gold LS, Lee CI, Devine B, et al.Imaging Techniques for Treatment Evaluation for Metastatic Breast Cancer[Internet]. Rockville (MD): Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (US); 2014 Oct. (Technical Briefs, No. 17.)National Cancer Institute.Tumor markers.Additional ReadingGraham L, Shupe M, Schneble E, et al.Current Approaches and Challenges in Monitoring Treatment Responses in Breast Cancer.Journal of Cancer. 2014. 5(1):58-68. doi: 10.7150/jca.7047Liedtke C, Kolberg H.Systemic Therapy of Advanced/Metastatic Breast Cancer—Current Evidence and Future Concepts.Breast Care. 2016. 11(4):275-281. doi: 10.1159/000447549DeVita, Vincent., et al. Cancer: Principles & Practice of Oncology. Cancer of the Breast. Wolters Kluwer, 2016.
4 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Lindström LS, Karlsson E, Wilking UM, et al.Clinically used breast cancer markers such as estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 are unstable throughout tumor progression. J Clin Oncol. 2012;30(21):2601-8. doi:10.1200/JCO.2011.37.2482Sharma M, Gogia A, Deo SSV, Mathur S.Role of rebiopsy in metastatic breast cancer at progression. Curr Probl Cancer. 2018; doi:10.1016/j.currproblcancer.2018.12.001Gold LS, Lee CI, Devine B, et al.Imaging Techniques for Treatment Evaluation for Metastatic Breast Cancer[Internet]. Rockville (MD): Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (US); 2014 Oct. (Technical Briefs, No. 17.)National Cancer Institute.Tumor markers.Additional ReadingGraham L, Shupe M, Schneble E, et al.Current Approaches and Challenges in Monitoring Treatment Responses in Breast Cancer.Journal of Cancer. 2014. 5(1):58-68. doi: 10.7150/jca.7047Liedtke C, Kolberg H.Systemic Therapy of Advanced/Metastatic Breast Cancer—Current Evidence and Future Concepts.Breast Care. 2016. 11(4):275-281. doi: 10.1159/000447549DeVita, Vincent., et al. Cancer: Principles & Practice of Oncology. Cancer of the Breast. Wolters Kluwer, 2016.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Lindström LS, Karlsson E, Wilking UM, et al.Clinically used breast cancer markers such as estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 are unstable throughout tumor progression. J Clin Oncol. 2012;30(21):2601-8. doi:10.1200/JCO.2011.37.2482Sharma M, Gogia A, Deo SSV, Mathur S.Role of rebiopsy in metastatic breast cancer at progression. Curr Probl Cancer. 2018; doi:10.1016/j.currproblcancer.2018.12.001Gold LS, Lee CI, Devine B, et al.Imaging Techniques for Treatment Evaluation for Metastatic Breast Cancer[Internet]. Rockville (MD): Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (US); 2014 Oct. (Technical Briefs, No. 17.)National Cancer Institute.Tumor markers.
Lindström LS, Karlsson E, Wilking UM, et al.Clinically used breast cancer markers such as estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 are unstable throughout tumor progression. J Clin Oncol. 2012;30(21):2601-8. doi:10.1200/JCO.2011.37.2482
Sharma M, Gogia A, Deo SSV, Mathur S.Role of rebiopsy in metastatic breast cancer at progression. Curr Probl Cancer. 2018; doi:10.1016/j.currproblcancer.2018.12.001
Gold LS, Lee CI, Devine B, et al.Imaging Techniques for Treatment Evaluation for Metastatic Breast Cancer[Internet]. Rockville (MD): Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (US); 2014 Oct. (Technical Briefs, No. 17.)
National Cancer Institute.Tumor markers.
Graham L, Shupe M, Schneble E, et al.Current Approaches and Challenges in Monitoring Treatment Responses in Breast Cancer.Journal of Cancer. 2014. 5(1):58-68. doi: 10.7150/jca.7047Liedtke C, Kolberg H.Systemic Therapy of Advanced/Metastatic Breast Cancer—Current Evidence and Future Concepts.Breast Care. 2016. 11(4):275-281. doi: 10.1159/000447549DeVita, Vincent., et al. Cancer: Principles & Practice of Oncology. Cancer of the Breast. Wolters Kluwer, 2016.
Graham L, Shupe M, Schneble E, et al.Current Approaches and Challenges in Monitoring Treatment Responses in Breast Cancer.Journal of Cancer. 2014. 5(1):58-68. doi: 10.7150/jca.7047
Liedtke C, Kolberg H.Systemic Therapy of Advanced/Metastatic Breast Cancer—Current Evidence and Future Concepts.Breast Care. 2016. 11(4):275-281. doi: 10.1159/000447549
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