What metastases can breast cancer cause, and which organs are most commonly affected?

2026-09-15

During its dissemination, breast cancer can produce regional lymph node metastases and distant metastases. In terms of distant metastases, the most frequently affected organs are the bones, lungs, liver, and central nervous system (brain); in addition, among regional lymph nodes, involvement of the axillary lymph nodes is the most common. Less frequently, it may also metastasize to other sites, such as the gastrointestinal tract, peritoneum, ovaries, or thyroid gland.\n\nAccording to summaries of the clinical literature, the most common distant targets of breast cancer are the bones, lungs, liver, and brain (pmid:41835638, pmid:41025019, pmid:40698488). Bone metastasis occurs in a significant proportion of patients, and the bone microenvironment provides favorable conditions for cellular colonization (pmid:42591313, pmid:40749014). Furthermore, the early and primary metastatic pathway of breast cancer leads toward regional, particularly axillary, lymph nodes (pmid:42370387, pmid:41752719).\n\nCertain histological subtypes, such as invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC), can also exhibit distinctive and less common organ distributions, including the gastrointestinal tract, peritoneum, as well as the ovaries and gynecological organs (pmid:42298254, pmid:42449801, pmid:39829946). Additionally, metastases have been sporadically described in the thyroid gland (pmid:42266215), urinary bladder (pmid:41835638), as well as the optic nerve and ocular tissues (pmid:41080317, pmid:41378304).

References

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