What is Early Breast Cancer?
“Early breast cancer” refers to cancer that is localized to the breast and/or nearby lymph nodes. “Early” means that it has not spread to other parts of the body, and is usually classified stage 0, I, or II.
Staging is determined by 3 factors: the T (tumor size), N (nodal involvement), and M (metastasis):
- Stage 0 (carcinoma in situ): This refers to abnormal cells that remain confined to their place of origin and have not invaded nearby tissue. The most common type is ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), where cells are contained within the milk ducts. However, lobular carcinoma in situ (LCIS), which involves the milk-producing lobules
- Stage I: A tumor up to 2 cm, possibly with microscopic lymph node involvement.
- Stage II: A tumor between 2-5 cm or involvement of a few lymph nodes.
Prognosis for early breast cancer is usually favorable.
- For stage 0 (DCIS), the 5-year relative survival rate is close to 100%.
- For stage I – 98–100%.
- For stage II – between 85–90%
Rates of early-stage breast cancer are rising, especially among women under 50. Recent data show that diagnoses of early breast cancer have increased by roughly 1.4% per year over the last decade. Early-stage breast cancer is often found before any symptoms appear, which is why many people are now advocating for more frequent or earlier screening.
For women over 40, mammograms are the standard screening tool, and they’re responsible for catching many cancers. But for younger women, routine screening isn’t typically recommended. Mammograms emit ionizing radiation, so to limit cumulative exposure over a lifetime, routine screening hasn’t typically begun until a woman’s 40s (although that guideline was lowered from 50 to 40 last year).
Despite the absence of routine scans, younger women are increasingly diagnosed. In the majority of the cases I see, women find the cancer themselves – maybe the patient finds a lump, or imaging is ordered for another reason.
While early detection is often framed as the key to saving lives, the reality is more complicated.Yes, catching cancer before it spreads can lead to better outcomes, but early diagnosis also creates a powerful illusion of control. The moment something abnormal is found, there’s often a rush to treat it as aggressively as possible, regardless of how slowly it may be growing or whether it would have ever posed a threat.
In Jessi J’s case, this meant surgery. For some, this might be the right decision. But it also reflects a broader issue in cancer care: many early-stage diagnoses, like DCIS, may never progress or become dangerous, yet once they’re found, the instinct is to treat them as aggressively as life-threatening diseases. The moment a diagnosis is made, it can trigger a chain of interventions that may not always match the actual risk.
The survival statistics from early detection can also be misleading. If you find something earlier, you naturally extend the time a person is “living with cancer,” even if the outcome wouldn’t have changed. This is called lead-time bias.
Most of the time, early breast cancer is treated with surgery, possibly followed by chemotherapy, radiation, or hormone therapy.
I’m not a fan of the “watch and wait” approach, but I also think there are a lot of things we can do before jumping to remove an organ or use harsh treatments which can lead to lifelong consequences.
The truth is cancer is not always inevitable and we need to understand why early stage cancer is showing up in women so young. To effectively treat cancer, we also need to take into account quality of life. In my opinion, aggressive treatments aren’t always the best course of action, especially if we haven’t taken time to uncover and address the underlying imbalances that allowed the tumor to form in the first place.
Interestingly, breast cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed in young women, and it’s hormonally driven in the majority of cases (~85%).
This means that anything disrupting hormone balance, such as chronic metabolic stress, obesity, or exposure to synthetic estrogens (like xenoestrogens found in plastics, cosmetics, and food packaging), may contribute to its development. Many of these exposures begin early in life, long before symptoms appear.
What factors are contributing to early breast cancer?
- Early puberty leading to higher lifetime exposure to estrogen.
- High body fat, which produces its own estrogen via aromatase.
- Hormonal contraceptives that contain estrogen or synthetic progestin.
- Higher exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (cosmetics and personal care products).
- Hypothyroidism.
- Diets high in estrogenic foods like seed oils, nuts, seeds, and soy.
- Delayed childbirth & having fewer children overall. The high progesterone exposure during pregnancy offers a lifetime protective effect against cancer.
- Increased use of fertility treatments, which stimulate supraphysiologic levels of estrogen. Repeated or long-term use may contribute to increased cancer risk, especially in the ovaries and endometrium.
Some other treatment options for early stage cancer:
- Progesterone therapy
- High dose vitamin C IV
- Repurposed drugs (aspirin, doxycycline, seligiline, etc.)
- Nutritional therapy: high dose thiamine, niacinamide, biotin, magnesium, vitamin D, vitamin E, etc.)
- Thyroid therapy
- Ozone therapy
- Carbon dioxide therapy
- Glycine
- Emotional work
Obviously, it depends on the individual case; however, there are other supportive therapies to improve cellular function, restore metabolism, and strengthen the body, rather than focusing solely on killing cancer cells. This approach addresses the internal terrain that allowed cancer to grow, and can be helpful for ensuring quality of life long-term.
What can women do to lower their risk?
- Ensure estrogen is balanced with progesterone. In many cases, this may require supporting ovulation or supplementing with progesterone
- Limit exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals. Avoid plastics, synthetic fragrances, conventional cleaning products, and cosmetics with parabens or phthalates.
- Get sunlight and support vitamin D levels. Vitamin D helps regulate cell growth and may reduce the risk of breast, uterine, and ovarian cancers.
- Ensure adequate intake of nutrients like niacinamide, magnesium, vitamin A, vitamin E, and calcium support hormonal balance, lower inflammation, and promote metabolic health.
- Minimize unnecessary hormone use. Long-term use of hormonal birth control or synthetic hormone replacement therapy should be discussed carefully, especially if cancer risk is a concern.
- Support liver detoxification. The liver breaks down estrogen. Support it with b vitamins, adequate protein and carbohydrates.
- Prioritize restorative sleep. Poor sleep disrupts circadian rhythm, raises cortisol, and throws off hormone balance, especially progesterone.