Well there must be quite a few! I am one. Stage 1 to 4 in less than 2 years. But that certainly doesn't mean that will happen to you.

Brenda E.

Unfortunately, 98% is not 100%- meaning two women out of every 100 with this diagnosis will NOT live free of MBC for 5 years-that is a lot of women!

Odds of a full recovery and never having to deal with BC again are very, very good for someone who is stage 1, but recurrences and progressions do happen.

hi there, these data is based on if you do not have chemo and Herceptin, which many stage 1 opt out of.

Her positive disease is a sneaky bastard that lurks microscopically... Personally, I think ALL ladies with her disease should go aggressive so they have the best chance of not being visited by the beast again.

I've met many women that have become Stage IV from Stage 1. I write a breast cancer blog

and have had countless women contact me. Many were under treated initially with Her2Pos.

PinkyTR - don't think I ever wrote specifically about that issue, but there are 185 posts, so perhaps!

PinkyTR-

If breast cancer recurs, a woman is considered stage 4. A woman with stage 1 breast cancer can have a recurrence, Her2+ is very aggressive.

Here's a general explanation from the Mayo Clinic:

A cancer recurrence means it's the same cancer coming back after some period of time. In rare cases, you may be diagnosed with a new cancer that's completely unrelated to your first cancer. This is referred to as a second primary cancer.

Where does cancer recur?

Your cancer can recur in the same place it was originally located, or it can migrate to other parts of your body. Recurrence is divided into three categories:

• Local recurrence. This means the cancer reappears in the same place it was first found or very close by. The cancer hasn't spread to the lymph nodes or other parts of the body.
• Regional recurrence. A regional recurrence occurs in the lymph nodes and tissue located in the vicinity of your original cancer.
• Distant recurrence. This refers to cancer that has spread (metastasized) to areas farther away from where your cancer was first located.

Pinky, years ago they graded/staged us differently. At first I was just stage I and then they added the B because of the micromets to nodes. I know I'm not HER2+, I mentioned that above. Herceptin has really helped those HER- gals.

Barbe, Here's what I understand about staging. You are considered Stage IV if you are initially diagnosed with distant mets. If you start out at Stage 1, 2, or 3 and then develop distant mets then you are considered Stage 1 (stage 2, stage 3) with mets. It really means the same thing. On this site most women show themselves as Stage IV once they become metastatic. Probably easier for everyone to understand?? Are you getting chemo or an aromatase inhibitor? They aren't the same thing. I've seen other Stage IIIc women talk about needing to take an aromatase inhibitor for life (for ER+ BC). I will say I've seen a lot of conflicting information depending on what website you read or what MO you talk to. Did that help at all??

Staging is always the first presentation stage. I am Stage II with metastatic disease on all of my reports. The term Stage IV has taken on an inaccurate life of its own on this board, which is unfortunate. AI's and chemo are two very different treatment protocols. Your oncologist is being very loose with the terminology. There are VERY few chemo-by-mouth available, and the AI's are not in that number. I am surprised that your first chemo would not be Xeloda, which is an actual chemo by mouth and can be very effective. And in fact, you should be given Faslodex before chemo since it is a much more gentle treatment, and can be very effective for a very long time. It is in a different drug class altogether.

I don't usually bother to be so precise about the definitions of these words on this site, but I know that you are very intelligent, and might want to know that these are all different classes of drugs.

*susan*

I think the definition of Stage IV depends on who you talk to. One of the ladies in my BC support group at church was DX as Stage 2 ILC and just found out the cancer has metasized to her hip. Her ONC at the Cleveland Clinic said she is now Stage IV and is taking a chemo pill for life. She is the second person I've talk to lately who is taking the chemo pill.

Diane

Yep.

BC x 4. Stage 1 . No breast and TCH then hmmm skin mets. No nodes all times except now Feb 2016.

2015 Rads again. Skin mets gone.

TM up. Pet Now opposite side lymph involvement.

Does any one know if a tiny skin nodule is in the skin

Can cause opposite side lymph involvement. Nodule in skin in sternum.