"Ductal Carcinoma"
In the breast, once the milk is produced in the lobules, it travels through tube like structures called ducts to the nipple. When the duct cells become abnormal, and begin to divide too much, ductal carcinoma – or cancer originating in the ducts develops.
As is true for lobular carcinoma, ductal carcinoma can 1. Remain in the ducts, or 2. Grow into another tissue in the breast (say the fatty tissue). In the first instance, the cancer is said to be “in situ”, or in place and has not travelled outside of the tissue that it first began growing in. In the second instance, the cancer is said to be invasive or infiltrating, as it has not only impacted the ducts, but the other parts of the breast and may potentially impact other parts of the body.
Cancer that started in the ducts and has not grown into other parts of the breast is said to be Ductal Carcinoma In Situ (DCIS). DCIS is the most common type of non-invasive breast cancer, and it is estimated that 1 out of every 5 new breast cancer diagnosis is DCIS. As with LCIS, DCIS is also a precancerous condition.
When the abnormal cells from the ducts grown into other parts of the breast or spread to other parts of the body, it is called Invasive Ductal Carcinoma, or Infiltrating Ductal Carcinoma. Invasive ductal carcinoma is the most common type of breast cancer that is diagnosed. Approximately 70 to 80% of all breast cancers are invasive ductal carcinoma.
Two websites that provide much more detail about Ductal carcinoma are:
The Susan G. Komen Foundation
http://komen.org
The American Cancer Society
http://www.cancer.org
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