Breast cancer is the second most common form of cancer in women in the U.S. (besides skin cancer) and makes up 6.8% of all cancer deaths. About one in three of all new female cancers each year is breast cancer. Men can also get breast cancer, though male rates are much lower—approximately one of every 100 breast cancers diagnosed is in a man.
In 2025, there will be over 316,000 new cases of breast cancer diagnosed, and there will be over 42,000 deaths from the disease.
There are several different types of breast cancer. Type is determined by the location in the breast where the cancer begins, how much it has grown or spread, and other factors related to the behavior of the cancer.
Invasive Ductal Carcinoma
The most common breast cancer is invasive ductal carcinoma (ICD), which accounts for about 80% of diagnoses. Within ICD, there are different types, including:
- Tubular ductal carcinoma.
- Mucinous ductal carcinoma.
- Metaplastic breast cancer.
- HER2 positive breast cancer.
- Triple-negative breast cancer.
There are a number of ways to diagnose ICD, including:
- A breast exam
- A mammogram
- A biopsy
- An MRI
- An ultrasound
There are several stages of ICD, including:
- Stage 0: Cancer is only in milk ducts.
- Stage 1: Cancer has spread to breast tissue, but not lymph nodes.
- Stage 2: A small tumor is in one of three lymph nodes.
- Stage 3: Cancer is in more than three lymph nodes.
- Stage 4: Cancer is in other places in the body, like the brain liver, or lungs.
ICD can be treated with surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, targeted therapy, and hormone therapy.
Inflammatory Breast Cancer
Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) is a rare, fast-growing, and invasive form of breast cancer. It occurs when cancer cells block lymph vessels in the skin, which then makes the breast look inflamed and swollen. IBC makes up 1% to 5% of all breast cancers, but accounts for approximately 10% of breast cancer deaths in the U.S. All IBCs start as Stage 3 cancers.
IBC is different from other forms of breast cancer. With IBC, there are not lumps in the breast like in other forms of the illness. It occurs more often in women under 40 and might not appear on a mammogram. IBC is usually more aggressive than other types of breast cancer and symptoms often occur within a three- to six-month timeframe.
There are a number of treatments for IBC, including chemotherapy, surgery, radiation, targeted drug therapy, and hormone therapy. Some of the drugs to treat IBC are:
- Trastuzumab: Can be used along or with other cancer medicines.
- Pertuzumab: Often used with other cancer medicines.
- Anthracyclines: Anti-tumor antibiotics
- Pembrolizumab: A type of immunotherapy
- Olaparib: A PARP inhibitor, which stops DNA repair process
Because IBC moves fast, survival rates are not as high as for other forms of breast cancer. IBC can be hard to diagnose, and is more likely to have spread at the time of diagnosis and more likely to return than many other types of breast cancer.
The five-year survival rate for IBC is about 40%. But with advances in treatment and care, that percentage is rising. Some studies have indicated that the five-year survival rate for Stage 3 IBC patients is now around 70% and for newly diagnosed Stage 4 patients is around 50%.
Metastatic Breast Cancer
Metastatic breast cancer (MBC) is when cancer has spread to other parts of the body besides the breast. Often, the spread is to the brain, bones, liver, and lungs. About 70% of MBC patients experience spread to the bones and about 60% experience spread to the lungs. MBC is considered Stage 4 cancer. Though it has no cure, it can be treated.
Currently, about 170,000 American women are living with MBC. Between 20% and 30% of women who have early-stage breast cancer later get MBC. However, about 15% are initially diagnosed with MBC. It can be diagnosed by biopsy, blood tests, bronchoscopy, imaging tests, and taps.
Treatments for MBC include chemotherapy, hormone therapy, immunotherapy, and targeted therapy. Surgery and radiation therapy can also be used. The goal of therapy for MBC is to slow the spread of the disease or reduce the symptoms with the aim of extending life and improving quality of life.
In the last few years, several new drugs have been approved to treat MBC. They include:
- Datroway® (datopotaman deruxtecan-dlnk): Approved in January 2025. It is given as an infusion once every three weeks.
- Itovebi™ (inavolsib): Approved in October 2024. It is in pill form and taken once a day.
- Truqap™ (capivasertib): Approved in November 2023. It is in pill form and taken two times a day for four days.
- Orserdu® (elacestrant): Approved in January 2023. It is a pill taken once a day.
The length of life after diagnosis can vary. Factors affecting life expectancy include age, general health, size of tumor, types of tissue the cancer has affected, and hormone receptors and HER2 receptors on cells with cancer. About one in three women is alive five years after diagnosis. However, some women may live 10 years or more with MBC.
References
Key Statistics for Breast Cancer. American Cancer Society.
About Breast Cancer in Men. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. September 16, 2024.
DePolo, Jamie. Invasive Ductal Carcinoma (ICD). Breastcancer.org.
Invasive Ductal Carcinoma. Cleveland Clinic.
Inflammatory Breast Cancer. American Cancer Society.
Inflammatory Breast Cancer. The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.
Inflammatory Breast Cancer. Cleveland Clinic.
Inflammatory breast cancer. Canadian Cancer Society.
Trastuzumab (intravenous route). Mayo Clinic.
Pertuzumab (intravenous route). Mayo Clinic.
Benisek, Alexandra. What Are Anthracyclines for Breast Cancer? WebMD. April 5, 2024.
Pembrolizumab (Keytruda). Cancer Research UK.
Metastatic Breast Cancer. Cleveland Clinic.
Stage 4 Breast Cancer Overview. National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc.
Treatment of Stage IV (Metastatic) Breast Cancer. American Cancer Society.
Vanliere Canzoniero, Jenna. Metastatic Breast Cancer. Johns Hopkins Medicine.
Metastatic Breast Cancer. Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.
Datroway. Drugs.com. June 24, 2025.