Will breast cancer metastasize to the stomach?

Can breast cancer metastasize to the stomach? Experts suggest that breast cancer can metastasize to the stomach and intestines, usually through direct spread or lymph node metastasis, so it can cause tumor formation in the stomach and intestines of the human body, affecting normal life. To which parts does breast cancer usually metastasize?

(1) Lung metastasis:

A. Lung metastasis usually occurs through blood flow, lymphatic metastasis or direct invasion. It is the most common distant metastasis of breast cancer. Seventy-five percent of patients with recurrent breast cancer will have lung metastasis.

B. Breast cancer varies according to the site of metastasis. Common symptoms include expectoration, cough, hemoptysis, dyspnea, and fever. Where does breast cancer usually metastasize? If breast cancer metastases occur in the interstitial lung, in the early stages, isolated nodules are often asymptomatic, but can be detected through imaging examinations. If the metastatic lesion is located in the bronchial endothelium, the cough symptom is obvious, and obstructive pneumonia or atelectasis may also occur. If carcinomatous lymphangitis of the lung occurs, dyspnea, cough with a lot of sputum, purple phlegm and chest pain may be seen, and there may be weakened lung breath sounds.

C. If mediastinal metastasis occurs at the same time, hoarseness, superior vena cava compression syndrome, diaphragmatic paralysis, and esophageal and tracheal compression symptoms may occur. Occasionally, the tumor causes acute pulmonary embolism, which manifests as progressive dyspnea.

(2) Bone metastasis:

A. Breast cancer metastasizes to bones mainly through hematogenous spread. Sixty percent of uncured breast cancer patients will have bone metastasis. The thoracolumbar vertebrae and pelvis are most likely to metastasize, accounting for 64.7% and 41.2% respectively, followed by ribs (most common in the vicinity of the cancer), skin bones, femurs, and skulls. In addition, the sternum has the lowest metastasis rate, about 3.5%. Clinically, multiple bone metastases are more common than single metastases.

B. Mild, intermittent bone pain occurs in the early stage of metastasis, gradually developing into persistent bone pain, progressively aggravated, with tenderness. If the vertebral body is affected, tenderness and percussion pain of the spinous process may occur. The pain may be fixed or not fixed, especially at night, and the pain is varied. The pain causes muscle tension and limited joint movement, causing the patient to take a passive position. If the bone metastasis is superficial, or the bone expands and deforms over time, local swelling may occur.

C. Pathological fractures occur. Since breast cancer is prone to bone metastasis, in the past, some patients even had pathological fractures as the first symptom of breast cancer. These pathological fractures can occur spontaneously or under the action of slight external force. The symptoms and signs vary depending on the location of the fracture. Pathological fractures of the vertebrae are manifested as cone deformation and collapse, and symptoms of spinal cord compression may occur. The initial symptoms are radicular pain and sensory impairment. When the lesion develops to the point where the spinal cord is partially compressed, hemisection syndrome may occur. When the spinal cord is completely compressed, paraplegia occurs.

(3) Liver metastasis:

A. The liver is one of the common sites of breast cancer metastasis, which often leads to the failure of breast cancer treatment. About 60% of uncured breast cancer patients will have liver metastasis. The main routes of liver metastasis are hematogenous metastasis and lymphatic metastasis, among which hematogenous metastasis is the main one. In the hematogenous spread of breast cancer, the lung ranks first, followed by the bone, and the liver ranks third.

B. The clinical manifestations of breast cancer liver metastasis are very similar to those of primary liver cancer. There are no symptoms in the early stages of metastasis, but later on, distension and discomfort in the upper abdomen or liver area will gradually appear, followed by abdominal distension, jaundice, loss of appetite, fatigue, weight loss, severe pain in the liver area, fever, etc.

C. Physical signs include liver enlargement, and even uneven lumps, ascites, and jaundice on the surface and edges of the liver.

(4) Brain metastasis

A. Brain metastasis of breast cancer occurs mainly through blood metastasis, with an incidence of about 15% in uncured breast cancer patients. Brain metastasis is a fatal complication of breast cancer and one of the main reasons for treatment failure.

B. It is often multifocal, and the metastatic sites are often located in important functional areas such as the frontal lobe and parietal lobe. The main clinical manifestations include cerebral edema and intracranial hypertension, neurological symptoms such as headache, vomiting, decreased vision, convulsions, limb movement disorders, and even coma, and weakening or disappearance of physiological reflexes of the nervous system and induction of pathological reflexes.

(5) Pleural metastasis:

Breast cancer can metastasize to the pleura through blood or local invasion, or cause pleural metastasis after lung metastasis penetrates into the pleural cavity. Patients generally have symptoms of chest tightness, chest pain, shortness of breath, and cough. Physical examination can show signs of pleural effusion, and puncture can extract bloody pleural effusion.

(6) Advanced breast cancer with multiple metastases:

Patients with advanced breast cancer have multiple metastatic lesions throughout the body, and their health deteriorates rapidly, with cachexia, mental depression, apathy, loss of appetite, weight loss, anemia, etc., progressively worsening symptoms, severe and stubborn cancer pain, and elevated body temperature.

(7) Breast cancer metastasis: This should not be ignored. Breast cancer can metastasize to other places through blood, lymphatic or direct invasion. If you have breast cancer, be careful to prevent metastasis, which can lead to irreversible consequences.