Recurrence

Recurrence is the term used to describe breast cancer that has returned following treatment. This can either be a local recurrence or a regional recurrence.

If you are unsure of the kind you have been diagnosed with, your specialist team will be able to explain this to you.

Local recurrence

When breast cancer returns in the chest/breast area, or in the skin near the original site or scar, this is called a local recurrence. In this case the cancer cells have remained in the local area and have not spread to other areas of the body.

It is thought that a local recurrence develops from cancer which may not have been completely removed by the initial treatment. Although additional treatment will be needed it is important to remember a local recurrence is treatable.

If you notice any changes in the skin around your scar line or chest area, contact your breast care nurse or specialist.

Regional recurrence

This is breast cancer which has come back following treatment and has spread to areas around the breast such as:

• the skin over the breast area
• the muscles on the chest wall
• the lymph nodes; around the breastbone (sternum) and between the ribs, called internal mammary nodes, or the nodes above and below the collarbone (clavicle).

If you notice any changes to your chest wall, armpit or the area around your collarbone, contact your breast care nurse or specialist. How this is treated will depend on what treatments you had previously but could include surgery, radiotherapy and drug treatments.

If you’re concerned about what this might entail you can talk with your specialist team or call our helpline to talk about this.

What it means for you

It is important to remember that having a local or regional recurrence of breast cancer is not the same as having secondary breast cancer (sometimes called metastases, stage 4 or advanced).

Secondary breast cancer occurs when cancer cells from the breast have spread to other parts of the body such as the bones, lungs, liver or brain.

When you have a local or regional recurrence of breast cancer, your doctors will want to ‘re-stage’ the cancer. This means that they want to look at the size, location and possible spread of the cancer. They may recommend that you have tests to see if cancer is in any other parts of your body.

This may include blood tests, a bone scan, a chest x-ray, a CT or MRI scan. These tests do not necessarily mean that they think your cancer has spread. But your doctors will want to check to make sure you’re being offered the most appropriate treatment.