Inflammatory breast cancer is a rare cancer that happens in a very small percentage of women. It is an aggressive type of locally advanced cancer.

In general, women with inflammatory breast cancer are diagnosed at a younger age. In extremely rare circumstances, this form of breast cancer is diagnosed in men. Inflammatory breast cancer usually develops as a sheet rather than a lump.

Symptoms of inflammatory breast cancer include:

Breast becomes red, purple, pink or bruised;
Breast becomes firm and enlarged;
A warm feeling in the breast;
Itching of the breast;
Pain;
Skin texture similar to an orange peel;
Enlarged lymph nodes under the arm;
Flattening of the nipple;
Swollen skin on the nipple;
Change in color of the skin around the nipple.

It is very easy to mix up the symptoms of inflammatory breast cancer with those of a breast infection. If you become aware of any of the signs of inflammatory breast cancer, see your doctor immediately.

This form of cancer is not caused by an inflammation or infection. Inflammatory breast cancer happens when cancer cells clog the lymphatic vessels in the skin overlying the breast.

In the past, inflammatory breast cancer was treated by surgery and was associated with a 100% mortality rate. Fortunately, major progress has been made in recent years using a combination of treatments, including surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy.

These treatments have greatly improved the prognosis for a woman with inflammatory breast cancer. Recent studies have shown as much as a 50% survival rate after 5 years and a 35% survival rate after 10 years.