Cancers 2010, 2(1), 143-152; doi:10.3390/cancers2010143
Article

What Is Inflammatory Breast Cancer? Revisiting the Case Definition

Paul H. Levine 1,* email, Ladan Zolfaghari 1 email, Heather Young 1 email, Muhannad Hafi 1 email, Timothy Cannon 1 email, Chitra Ganesan 1 email, Carmela Veneroso 1 email, Rachel Brem 2 email and Mark Sherman 3 email
1 The Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services, Washington, DC, 20037, USA 2 The Department of Radiology, Medical Faculty Associates, The George Washington University Medical Center, Washington, DC, 20037, USA 3 Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, the National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 14 December 2009; in revised form: 10 February 2010 / Accepted: 1 March 2010 / Published: 3 March 2010
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Epidemiologic Research and Cancer)
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Abstract: The case definition for inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) is controversial. The American Joint Committee on Cancer defines IBC as redness, warmth and edema involving at least half the breast. The SEER program relies on a pathologic finding of dermal lymphatic invasion and recently added those with clinical involvement of more than 3/4 of the breast. We established a registry to collect information and specimens from IBC patients to clarify the epidemiology and biology of these tumors. The goals of this report are to suggest improvements regarding case definitions and provide data on the variety of presentations relevant to early diagnosis.
Keywords: inflammatory breast cancer; AJCC; SEER; diagnosis; biology; clinical presentation

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Cite This Article

MDPI and ACS Style

Levine, P.H.; Zolfaghari, L.; Young, H.; Hafi, M.; Cannon, T.; Ganesan, C.; Veneroso, C.; Brem, R.; Sherman, M. What Is Inflammatory Breast Cancer? Revisiting the Case Definition. Cancers 2010, 2, 143-152.

AMA Style

Levine PH, Zolfaghari L, Young H, Hafi M, Cannon T, Ganesan C, Veneroso C, Brem R, Sherman M. What Is Inflammatory Breast Cancer? Revisiting the Case Definition. Cancers. 2010; 2(1):143-152.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Levine, Paul H.; Zolfaghari, Ladan; Young, Heather; Hafi, Muhannad; Cannon, Timothy; Ganesan, Chitra; Veneroso, Carmela; Brem, Rachel; Sherman, Mark. 2010. "What Is Inflammatory Breast Cancer? Revisiting the Case Definition." Cancers 2, no. 1: 143-152.

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