Metastasis
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| CT scan with metastatic tumour in lung (upper left lobe, seen on the right side of picture) | |
| DiseasesDB | 28954 |
| MedlinePlus | 002260 |
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Metastasis Microchapters |
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Diagnosis |
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Treatment |
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Metastasis On the Web |
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American Roentgen Ray Society Images of Metastasis |
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]
Synonyms and keywords: Metastatic neoplasm; secondary tumor; disseminated cancer; metastases
Overview
Diagnosis of primary and secondary tumors
The cells in a metastatic tumor resemble those in the primary tumor. Once the cancerous tissue is examined under a microscope to determine the cell type, a doctor can usually tell whether that type of cell is normally found in the part of the body from which the tissue sample was taken.
For instance, breast cancer cells look the same whether they are found in the breast or have spread to another part of the body. So, if a tissue sample taken from a tumor in the lung contains cells that look like breast cells, the doctor determines that the lung tumor is a secondary tumor. Still, the determination of the primary tumor can often be very difficult, and the pathologist may have to use several adjuvant techniques, such as immunohistochemistry, FISH (fluorescent in situ hybridization), and others. Despite the use of techniques, in some cases the primary tumor remains unidentified.
Metastatic cancers may be found at the same time as the primary tumor, or months or years later. When a second tumor is found in a patient that has been treated for cancer in the past, it is more often a metastasis than another primary tumor.
Pulmonary metastases
Patient#1
Patient#2
Treatments for metastatic cancer
Whether or not a cancer is local or has spread to other locations affects treatment and survival. If the cancer spreads to other tissues and organs, it may decrease a patient's likelihood of survival. However, there are some cancers (i.e., leukemia, brain) that can kill without spreading at all.
When cancer has metastasized, it may be treated with radiosurgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, biological therapy, hormone therapy, surgery or a combination of these. The choice of treatment generally depends on the type of primary cancer, the size and location of the metastasis, the patient's age and general health, and the types of treatments used previously. In patients diagnosed with CUP, it is still possible to treat the disease even when the primary tumor cannot be located.
The treatment options currently available are rarely able to cure metastatic cancer, though some tumors, such as testicular cancer, are usually still curable.
Related chapters
Resources
Medical information about metastatic cancer
- Q&A: Metastatic Cancer – from the National Cancer Institute
- Invasion and Metastases – from Cancer Medicine e.5
- How Cancer Grows and Spreads – an interactive Flash presentation that explores the progression of a carcinoma from a single cell to metastasis; from the research department of Children's Hospital Boston
- Metastasis photo at the Atlas of Pathology website
Charities and advocacy groups dealing with metastatic cancer
- The MetaCancer Foundation – resources and support for metastatic cancer survivors and their caregivers
- Metastatic Breast Cancer Network
- Children's Cancer Research Charity for Metastatic Cancer in Kids
Not specifically about metastatic cancer
- Understanding Cancer Types and Staging – a patients' guide at the CancerGuide website
- Cancer Forums – physicians answering questions about cancer
References
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