Title: G45 - Inflammatory Breast Cancer

Intro: More women are beating breast cancer than ever before. That's thanks to better treatments and early detection. Mammography is a pretty good screening tool that can pick up cancer early, while it's still curable with surgery. But there is a type of breast cancer that often doesn't show up on mammograms. It's called inflammatory breast cancer. It strikes fast and spreads quickly. But IBC can be stopped if you know the signs and symptoms.

MARILYN STANCHFIELD AND BOBBIE SCHOPP ARE MEMBERS OF TWO EXCLUSIVE CLUBS. ONE REQUIRES A PASSION FOR NEEDLE WORK.

"IT'S NORWEGIAN EMBROIDERY."

THE OTHER CLUB IS NOT ONE EITHER WANTED TO JOIN.

"AS I WAS GETTING READY FOR BED I NOTICED THAT THE UPPER PART OF MY LEFT BREAST WAS KIND OF WARM AND RED."

"I NOTICED A REDNESS. THE REDNESS SPREAD FROM THE SIZE OF A GOLF BALL TO A TENNIS BALL FROM FRIDAY TO MONDAY."

BOTH MARILYN AND BOBBIE ARE SURVIVORS OF INFLAMMATORY BREAST CANCER.

"IT'S A RELATIVELY RARE FORM OF BREAST CANCER THAT COMES UP RAPIDLY AND IT LOOKS LIKE THE BREAST IS INFLAMED."

DR. CHARLES LOPRINZI SAYS INFLAMMATORY BREAST CANCER IS SOMETIMES MISDIAGNOSED AT FIRST AND WOMEN ARE PUT ON ANTIBIOTICS. THAT'S BECAUSE IT DOESN'T USUALLY BEGIN WITH A LUMP. INSTEAD, IT LOOKS LIKE AN INFECTION. MASTITIS. BUT WHAT'S REALLY HAPPENING IS THE CANCER CELLS QUICKLY SPREAD THROUGH THE BREAST'S LYMPH SYSTEM. THEY GET STUCK AND CLOG LYMPH DUCTS RESULTING IN SWELLING, REDNESS SORENESS AND SOMETIMES PUCKERING OF THE SKIN.

"IF THE CANCER IS ONLY EVIDENT IN THE BREAST AND/OR THE LYMPH NODES AROUND THE BREAST, THEN IT IS STILL POTENTIALLY CURABLE. BUT THE CHANCE OF CURE IS MUCH LOWER THAN WITH OTHER TYPES OF BREAST CANCER."

MARILYN AND BOBBIE SAY THEY WERE LUCKY. THEIR CANCER WAS CAUGHT EARLY ENOUGH FOR CHEMOTHERAPY SURGERY AND RADIATION TO BE EFFECTIVE.

"I THINK IT'S A MIRACLE BECAUSE I KNOW THERE'S NOT THAT MANY WHO SURVIVE THIS."

SEE A DOCTOR IF YOU NOTICE ANY CHANGES IN YOUR BREAST. IT COULD SAVE YOUR LIFE AND ALLOW YOU TO BECOME A MEMBER OF THE GROUP THAT SURVIVES INFLAMMATORY BREAST CANCER.

FOR MEDICAL EDGE, I'M VIVIEN WILLIAMS.

Tag: Only 2 to 3-percent of all breast cancer cases are diagnosed as inflammatory breast cancer. It is rare, but Dr. Loprinzi says all women should seek medical care if they develop what looks like an infection of the breast. It may well be just an infection, but it's best to be sure.

Inflammatory breast cancer can be tough to treat, but you can survive if it's caught early.

For more information, visit our Website at www.mayoclinic.org/medical-edge.

STATIONS: Per the licensing agreement, please provide link from your station's website to http://www.medicaledge.org or voice tag "mayoclinic.org/medical-edge" for more information.