When it comes to diseases and sicknesses, it’s important to know as much as you can about them, especially if you or someone you know and love is living with them. Research and being more vocal and asking questions during your doctors' appointments is extremely important. However, they should not be done to the point where you make yourself paranoid and overwhelmed, or to the point where you are self-diagnosing without getting proper confirmation of the symptoms you’re experiencing and what they might mean. Besides that, it’s important to know what you can, especially if you may be someone susceptible to developing certain illnesses and diseases. This could be because of your ethnicity, race, sex, age or even your family history. Whatever it is, you need to know the real and the truth, especially when it comes to stage 4.
What Does Stage 4 Mean In Terms Of Sickness
In terms of sickness and disease, have you ever heard of the term stage 4? If so, did you ever question what it meant? Well, in terms of illness, stage 4 is when a disease (usually cancer) has metastasized. What that means is that the cancer has spread to other parts of the body, making it the most fatal stage of sickness.
Usually you hear the term stage 4 when talking about the most advanced type of breast cancer, but other types of cancers such as liver or lung cancer can also advance to stage 4.
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Though stage 4 is the most severe type of cancer and illness, there are many cases where it isn’t terminal.
Though it isn’t curable, stage 4 cancer is more progessive and advanced so it requires a more aggressive treatment compared to the other stages of a disease. When stage 4 becomes terminal, that’s when it becomes fatal and the treatment's main focus is to control rather than try to “cure” it.
RELATED: Breast Cancer Glossary: Common Breast Cancer Terms You Should Know
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How Does This Look For Breast Cancer
As stated before, any type of illness can metastasize, also known as reaching stage 4. When it comes to breast cancer, stage 4 means that this cancer has moved from the breast to other parts of the body. This is called metastatic breast cancer, the most severe form of breast cancer.
When the cancer cells break away from the tumor that is in the breast and get carried to other parts of the body through the bloodstream, metastatic breast cancer is beginning to form and develop. When these cells begin to spread, they usually go to the lungs, brain, the bones or even the liver. This can lead to the development of other cancers such as brain, liver and lung cancer.
The Symptoms Of Metastatic Breast Cancer
If the cancer has moved to other parts of the body (metastases), it usually goes to the bones, liver, or brain as previously stated. You will begin to see symptoms and signs that the cancer has moved.
These symptoms include numbness and weakness all over the body, abdominal pain, joint and back pain that
never stops aching or causing you discomfort, shortness of breath and trouble breathing.
Some more serious signs include jaundice, which is the yellowing of your skin or eyes, trouble using the bathroom (urinating), seizures, never-ending nausea and vomiting, and even loss of vision or other vision problems such as double or blurry vision.
In order to determine if your breast cancer has developed into metastatic breast cancer, your doctor will perform a series of tests on you to determine if these and other symptoms are from metastasis or regular symptoms of your original diagnosis.
What Is Stage 4 In Other Illnesses And How Does It Look?
Stage 4 in other cancers and illnesses is typically the same as metastatic breast cancer. It means that those cancer cells have spread to other parts of the body.
In most instances, if stage 4 has developed in the body, there will be fatigue, problems with urinating, fluid retention, shortness of breath, loss of appetite, constant pain in the joints, severe headaches, dry cough, weakness, numbness in the body and even chest pain.
With that being said, this information wasn’t to scare you or cause paranoia, this was simply for educational purposes. It’s extremely important to know, even if it’s only a little, about what can happen.
Again, research is very important and knowing the risk and developments that can come is needed even if you think it won’t happen or can’t happen to you. There’s no harm in knowing, being prepared and as educated as possible, it may actually lower your risk or save your life.
