Inflammatory breast cancer

Abstract

Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) is uncommon and violent, resembling infection. This chapter is focused on the intrinsic/extrinsic and inflammatory pathways associated with the IBC. The genomic difference between IBC and non-IBC has not been established so far, stemness is one of the key factors in the aggressiveness of the IBC. The metastatic potential of IBC is associated with several proteins like caveolin 1. Angiogenesis is one of the reasons for embolism. Formation of chemotherapy dormant units possesses a major challenge in the treatment. Mesenchymal stem cells help the growth of both macrophages and IBC cells. Fibroblasts play a role i.e., metastasis. The importance of communication between tumor and microenvironment has been elaborated involving cytokine mediation, COX2, EGFR, PDGFR, and IL-6 pathway mediation. The management of IBC involves multimodal approaches like chemotherapy, targeted therapy, surgery, radiotherapy, hormone therapy, immunotherapy, neoadjuvant chemotherapy, and adjuvant therapy. Understanding the intrinsic/extrinsic and inflammatory pathways involved in IBC is key to the successful and effective management of IBC. This chapter will form a guide in the development of advanced clinical trials for fighting this lethal disease.