Advanced Breast Cancer

According to Belgium statistics, breast cancer is the most common cancer in women¹. In 2020 more than 10.000 women were diagnosed with breast cancer.  At Novartis, we are committed to keep improving and extending the lives of breast cancer patients.

Our ambition is to keep innovating and working with all relevant stakeholders in Belgium and Luxembourg, to make a difference in patients’ lives.

Advanced stage symptoms of breast cancer

• Paraneoplastic syndromes²: symptoms caused by the cancer but are not due to the tumour itself. They may be caused by hormones or other substances released into the bloodstream by the cancer, depletion of normal substances by the cancer, or a host response to the tumour. Symptoms occur in tissues remote from the initial cancer and any metastatic lesions.

• Metastatic disease causes symptoms related to the location and extend of the tumour. Symptoms include bone discomfort, skin changes, cough or shortness of breath, and fatigue

Paraneoplastic syndromes may be the first sign of cancer, appearing before the primary cancer is even diagnosed. Recognition of the symptoms may therefore lead to detection of an otherwise asymptomatic tumour at an early and treatable stage. Learn all about the different types of breast cancer treatments.

Risk factors for breast cancer ³

The risks and effects of breast cancer vary widely based on a number of factors. Below we provide an overview of the most common factors:

• Gender: Breast cancer is much more common in women than in men.
• Age: Risk increases with ages from 55 years and older
• Genetics: Breast cancer is diagnosed more often in white individuals. Risk decreases in Asion, Hispanic and Native American individuals.
• Family history: The risk increases significantly if breast cancer was diagnosed in parents, grandparents, …
• Personal history: Risk of developing new breast cancer increases if previously diagnosed at a younger age. The risk also increases when women have been diagnosed with certain types of benign (non-cancer) breast conditions
• Body length: Breast cancer is diagnosed more often in taller women than smaller women
• Lifestyle: Risk increases with obesity after menopause, alcohol, ionizing radiation
• Hormone exposure: Risk increases with early menarche, late menopause, oral contraceptives and diethylstilbestrol (DES). At the same time, studies show that risk decreases with oophorectomy before menopause, pregnancy before the age of 30, breastfeeding

Signs of metastatic breast cancer ^4,5,6,7

	Bone: most common symptom is pain
	Liver: clinical presentations include nausea, anorexia, weight loss, abdominal pain, and yellowing of the skin and eyes
	Lung/Pleura: asymptomatic, diagnosed through radiological images
	Brain: clinical presentations include headache, focal weakness, altered mental state, seizures and ataxia.