Primary breast tumors vary in shape and size. The smallest lesion that can be felt by hand is typically 1.5 to 2 centimeters (about 1/2 to 3/4 inch) in diameter. Sometimes tumors that are 5 centimeters (about 2 inches) — or even larger — can be found in the breast.
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| Tumor Size - Centimeters |
| Drawing shows different sizes of a tumor in centimeters (cm) compared to the size of a pea (1 cm), a peanut (2 cm), a grape (3 cm), a walnut (4 cm), a lime (5 cm), an egg (6 cm), a peach (7 cm), and a grapefruit (10 cm). Also shown is a 10-cm ruler and a 4-inch ruler. Tumor sizes are often measured in centimeters (cm) or inches. Common food items that can be used to show tumor size in cm include: a pea (1 cm), a peanut (2 cm), a grape (3 cm), a walnut (4 cm), a lime (5 cm or 2 inches), an egg (6 cm), a peach (7 cm), and a grapefruit (10 cm or 4 inches). |
| Cells or Tissue -- Abnormal Cells or Tissue |
| Color, Medical Illustration (JPEG format) |
| National Cancer Institute |
| Terese Winslow (Illustrator) |
| CDR415526 |
| May 13, 2019 |
| August 29, 2008 |
| Yes - This image is copyright protected. Any use of this image is subject to prevailing copyright laws. U.S. Government has reuse rights. Please contact the rights holder of this image for permission requests. Rights holder: Terese Winslow |
| Tumor Size In Millimeters |
| Drawing shows different sizes of common items in millimeters (mm): a sharp pencil point (1 mm), a new crayon point (2 mm), a pencil-top eraser (5 mm), a pea (10 mm), a peanut (20 mm), and a lime (50 mm). Also shown is a 2-centimeter (cm) ruler that shows 10 mm is equal to 1 cm. Tumor sizes are often measured in millimeters (mm) or centimeters. Common items that can be used to show tumor size in mm include: a sharp pencil point (1 mm), a new crayon point (2 mm), a pencil-top eraser (5 mm), a pea (10 mm), a peanut (20 mm), and a lime (50 mm). |
| Cells or Tissue -- Abnormal Cells or Tissue |
| Color, Medical Illustration (JPEG format) |
| National Cancer Institute |
| Terese Winslow (Illustrator) |
| CDR796250 |
| January 31, 2019 |
| March 13, 2019 |
| Yes - This image is copyright protected. Any use of this image is subject to prevailing copyright laws. U.S. Government has reuse rights. Please contact the rights holder of this image for permission requests. Rights holder: Terese Winslow |
Tumor size is strongly related to prognosis (chances for survival). In general, the smaller the tumor, the better the prognosis tends to be [12].
Tumor size is part of breast cancer staging. In the TNM staging system, a “T” followed by a number shows the size of the tumor.
In some cases, the size of the tumor cannot be determined (TX) or a tumor cannot be found (T0).
A diagnosis of carcinoma in situ is classified as Tis.
Tumor size categories | |
TX: Tumor size cannot be assessed | |
T0: No tumor can be found | |
Tis: Carcinoma in situ | |
Subcategories of Tis: | |
Tis (DCIS): Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) | |
Tis (Paget): Paget disease of the breast (Paget disease of the nipple) with no DCIS or invasive breast cancer | |
T1: Tumor is 2 cm or smaller | |
Subcategories of T1: | |
T1mi: Very small tumor (0.1 cm or smaller) | |
T1a: Tumor is larger than 0.1 cm, but no larger than 0.5 cm | |
T1b: Tumor is larger than 0.5 cm, but no larger than 1 cm | |
T1c: Tumor is larger than 1 cm, but no larger than 2 cm | |
T2: Tumor is larger than 2 cm, but no larger than 5 cm | |
T3: Tumor is larger than 5 cm | |
T4: Tumor is any size, but has spread beyond the breast tissue to the chest wall and/or skin | |
Subcategories of T4: | |
T4a: Tumor has spread to the chest wall | |
T4b: Tumor has spread to the skin, but is not inflammatory breast cancer | |
T4c: Tumor has spread to both the chest wall and skin | |
T4d: Inflammatory breast cancer | |
| Adapted from American Joint Commission on Cancer materials [31]. |
Updated 11/12/21