Stages and grades of breast cancer

The stage tells you how big your cancer is and whether it has spread. The grade means how abnormal the cells look under a microscope.

The TNM system is a way of staging breast cancer. TNM stands for Tumour, Node, Metastasis.

Stage 1 breast cancer means that the cancer is small and only in the breast tissue, or it might be found in lymph nodes close to the breast.

Stage 2 breast cancer means that the cancer is either in the breast or in the nearby lymph nodes or both. It is an early stage breast cancer.

Stage 3 means that the cancer has spread from the breast to the lymph nodes close to the breast, the skin of the breast or to the chest wall.

Stage 4 breast cancer means that the cancer has spread to other parts of the body such as the bones and lungs.