*Insert a witty and charming intro here to grab your attention*!  We tried to come up with a funny tagline to keep you reading this article but talking about hard topics like breast cancer is tough! The disease has affected so many lives and we just want you to be informed. So, let's get to it and discuss what happens once there is a diagnosis of breast cancer. 

Once you or someone you know has been diagnosed with breast cancer, the cancer must be staged. Staging is a process of seeing how much the cancer has spread throughout the body and at which locations within the body. This helps the doctor determine treatment and prognosis (the outcome of the disease -meaning how effective treatment may or may not be or if there is a high chance of death.)  

Stages of breast cancer are determined by the following factors: 

• The size of the tumor in the breast

• The number of lymph nodes affected with cancer cells

• Other organs that may have been invaded

The stages of breast cancer range from 0-4 depending on the above criteria.  As cancer spreads to the lymph nodes and other organs in our bodies, the stages advance.

Support Systems

No matter if you have breast cancer or know someone with breast cancer, a good support system is always needed. The journey can be scary and life-changing and there is no right or wrong way to support. Give what you can so or ask for what you need, the journey doesn't have to be fought alone.