If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with breast cancer it is devastating news. It is important to know that your breast cancer survival rate can be determined by what stage your breast cancer is in. With the scientific advances today in the medical field a breast cancer diagnosis is not as dire as in the past. There are various factors that may affect the chance of surviving breast cancer.

The stage the cancer is in is the primary determination of your breast cancer survival rate. Stages range from zero to four. The earliest stage of cancer is stage zero. Your breast cancer survival rate is greater if your cancer is detected in the early stages.

Most breast cancer survival rates are based on five years post diagnosis. Breast cancer survival rates are improving all the time. Researchers make new discoveries all the time. Currently the use of biomarkers may be a useful indicator it finding cancer in very early states for those with a high risk of contracting the disease. Other factor that may affect the survival rate is the age of the patient. Women forty years and older have a little bit better chance of survival than younger women. There are different types of cancer that can affect the survival rate. Some cancers require more aggressive therapies and are more dangerous while others have more positive prognosis and better survival rates.

Hormones also may affect the rate of cancer growth. Hormone treatments are sometimes indicated to help prevent cancer growth. With all the factors that may affect an individuals breast cancer survival rate that generalized statements can be misleading. Your oncologist or physician is the person in the best position to give you your chance of survival.

Even so, there are predictions based upon the staging of breast cancer. The typical survival rate is presented in the table below:

Stage -- >Five Year Average Survival Rate

0  -->  100%

1   --> 100%

11A   --> 92%

11B  --> 81%

111A --> 67%

111B --> 54%

IV --> 20%

This table is based upon date from the American Cancer Society and does not take into consideration individuals who die of other conditions. The survival rate decreases for each stage after seven years. But, it is important to know that these are averages and that even women with breast cancer in the advanced stages can live much longer than seven years.

Through research alternative treatments are being discovered all the time. There are studies that are looking at the effectiveness of the use of aspirin to improve the survival rates of women. A study by Harvard Medical School showed a fifty percent improvement of the survival rates of women who took aspirin. It also showed a decreased risk of the cancer returning. The study did not determine exactly how or why aspirin reduces risks but it does confirm earlier studies. The success of aspirin may be due to its anti-inflammatory benefits pointing to realization that cancer may be an inflammatory disease, or it could be lowering the estrogen levels of the blood or be working an a completely different way.