Spreading of Cancer

[TaraVamp]

My mom was diagnosed with breast cancer,went through chemotherapy,then had the breast removed.About a year later, she got checked and the cancer had returned and had spread to the lungs.She was given 6mo.-1yr to live.She has some lumps on her neck,coughs constantly,spits up blood sometimes,has no appetite usually,throws up what she does eat,and usually just sleeps a lot.How can I tell when the cancer has spread to other organs and how long she has left?

[TaraVamp]

Thank you for all of your help. She does sometimes complain of lower back pain,but she went to the ER and they took some X Rays.They told her that it had not spread anywhere else,other than where it already existed in her lungs.Many people have told her already that when the doctor said she has 6 months to a year it didn't really mean she wouldn't live longer.She is still getting new tumors around her throat,but she hasn't gotten much worse,other than the vomiting.She eats when she can and tries to hold something down.Thank you again for all of your help with this matter.

[Fernando Roque, MD]

Hi.  The only objective way to see if your mother has some other sites of metastases is to have these other body parts examined by some imaging procedure.  Breast cancer has a predilection for spreading to the other breast, the lungs, liver, bones and brain.  Metastases to the opposite breast can be determined by physical examination or by mammography.  Liver metastases can be checked by means of a liver ultrasound or CT scan.  Brain metastases can likewise be detected by CT scan.  Cancer spread to the bones can be seen on whole body bone scan, but this procedure may be dispensed with if your mother does not complain of any bone, hip or low back pain.  As for how long your mother has left, I don't think the clinical studies can accurately predict for specific individuals, only for populations of breast cancer patients with similar characteristics.  So her doctor's survival estimate of 6 months to a year applies for the AVERAGE patient with the same clinical characteristics and stage as your mother.  It may not necessarily apply to your mother, particularly if she avails of further treatment which just may prolong her survival beyond what was predicted.