Breast cancer is a devastating and potentially life-threatening disease, which caused over 40,500 deaths and accounted for more than 194,000 new diagnoses in the United States in 2009, reports the National Cancer Society. Breast cancer is commonly treated with therapies to remove the tumor and kill any remaining cancer cells. In some cases, breast cancer can re-develop after treatment, either at the site of the initial tumor or at distant sites throughout the body. Breast cancer recurrence can be accompanied by the development of a number of symptoms.
New Lump Growth
A sign of breast cancer recurrence includes the growth of a new lump around the surgical site. Breast cancer surgeries aim to remove affected breast tissue, but if cancer cells remain after surgery, they can develop into a tumor in any remaining breast tissue. This is called local recurrence, and proves relatively rare, according to Imaginis. Local recurrence can be detected in physical examination as a lump around the surgical site. Lumps may also form within the muscles of the chest or the lymph nodes, called regional recurrence. Imaginis reports that regional recurrence may cause a lump in the armpit, or lump in lymph nodes on the neck or near the collarbone. Physicians need to monitor patients who have undergone breast cancer surgeries to remove breast tumors to detect any breast cancer recurrence to allow for early treatment of the new tumors.
Weight Loss and Loss of Appetite
Some cases of breast cancer recurrence involve the development of new tumors in distant organs throughout the body, called distant recurrence. Distant recurrence may occur if the cancer spread before breast cancer surgery, so cells that had migrated to other organs could not become removed with treatment. It may also occur due to failure of chemotherapy or other drug therapy treatments.
One site of possible breast cancer recurrence includes the liver, an organ that detoxifies the body and releases bile that aids in digestion. BreastCancer.org reports that if distant recurrence occurs in the liver, the patient will experience a loss of appetite and unexplained weight loss. Patients experiencing these symptoms must seek medical attention to check for breast cancer in the liver. If left untreated, the breast cancer recurrence can cause more severe symptoms associated with liver failure, which can become fatal.
Headaches
Another possible symptom of breast cancer recurrence is a headache, which can develop if distant recurrence occurs in the brain. Breast cancer metastasis to the brain increases brain mass and intracranial pressure, which can cause headaches. Headaches as a result of distant breast cancer recurrence will often differ from the patient's usual history of headaches--they may become more severe, last longer and occur more frequently. Headaches due to breast cancer recurrence in the brain may be accompanied by visual disturbances or muscle weakness, according to BreastCancer.org. Breast cancer patients experiencing unusual headaches or other neurological symptoms should seek immediate medical attention to detect possible breast cancer recurrence in the brain.
