Inflammatory breast cancer is a somewhat rare and very aggressive form of breast cancer. This type of breast cancer causes the breast to become swollen and inflamed, as opposed to the typical lump that most breast cancers cause. Because this type of breast cancer can rapidly invade other tissues, it is typically treated with a variety of approaches.
Chemotherapy
The American Cancer Society indicates that one of the first treatments that most patients with inflammatory breast cancer receive is chemotherapy. Chemotherapy consists of the administration of drugs which are toxic to the breast cancer cells. This treatment is often given before surgery and is termed "neo-adjuvant therapy." The most effective combination of chemotherapy drugs is usually an anthracycline (such as epirubicin or doxorubicin) and a taxane (docetaxel or paclitaxel). Some patients with a particular subtype of breast cancer (called Her2-positive cancer) may also receive another medication, called trastuzumab.
Surgery
The Mayo Clinic indicates that after patients have received a round of neo-adjuvant chemotherapy, the next step in treatment is surgery. Surgery is aimed at removing the cancerous tissue from the patient's body. Most patients receive what is called modified radical mastectomy, in which the entire breast is removed along with nearby lymph nodes. The lymph nodes are then examined to see if they contain cancerous cells.
Radiation
The National Cancer Institute explains that radiation is commonly given to patients with inflammatory breast cancer after they have undergone surgery, because some cancer cells may still remain. Radiation treatment involves bombarding the affected part of the patient's body with high energy X-ray beams that will cause DNA damage to the cancerous cells, either slowing their growth or killing them.
Hormonal Therapy
Some kinds of breast cancer respond to estrogen, which is a hormone that causes breast tissue to grow. If a patient's inflammatory breast cancer is of this variety, the patient can receive either the medication tamoxifen (which blocks the cells ability to respond to estrogen) or aromatase inhibitors (which prevent estrogen from being created).
