Ductal Carcinoma In Situ (DCIS)

Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is the earliest possible clinical diagnosis of breast cancer and is frequently diagnosed with screening mammography that has detected small areas of calcification in the breast. Patients rarely suspect that they have breast cancer. If DCIS is untreated, approximately 30 percent of patients will develop invasive breast cancer an average of 10 years from the initial diagnosis. A variety of factors ultimately influence a patient's decision to receive treatment for cancer. The purpose of receiving cancer treatment may be to improve symptoms through local control of the cancer or to prolong a patient's survival. The potential benefits of receiving cancer treatment must be carefully balanced with the potential risks of receiving cancer treatment. Most new treatments are developed in clinical trials.

DCIS can be thought of as a pre-cancerous or early-stage growth of abnormal cells in the ducts of the breast. Historically, DCIS was an extremely uncommon finding in women and little attention was given to defining its optimal treatment. This is because DCIS can be cured almost 100 percent of the time with a surgical mastectomy. Other treatment options now include lumpectomy and radiation. With the increased use of screening mammography, women are more likely to have cancer diagnosed at an earlier stage, and therefore the number of women diagnosed with DCIS is increasing.