THE INVISIBLE KILLER

You probably haven't heard of it, but every woman needs to know about invasive lobular carcinoma

- WORDS: FRANCES LEATE. PHOTOS (MAIN POSED BY MODEL): GETTY

For many women who go on to be diagnosed with breast cancer, it’s usually feeling a lump ora change in their breast that sets alarm bells ringing and encourages them to get checked out.

But, in the UK alone, 22 women a day are being diagnosed with a lesser known type of breast cancer - invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC) - which makes up 15 per cent of breast cancer cases, yet rarely forms a lump.

Unlike the more common ductal breast cancer, ILC develops in the milk-producing glands known as lobules and cells often grow in lines or as single cells, making it harder to detect, even in mammograms and ultrasound scans.

This means itis often not diagnosed until it’s already well advanced.

There is no specific treatment - it’s the seventh most common type of cancer in women, but the basic biological research to understand ILC has never been carried out. Women are given mastectomies, chemotherapy and radiotherapy, when it’s unclear what exactly might be the most efficient way of tackling this form of the disease.

Now, the Lobular Moon Shot Project (LMSP), founded in May 2023, is campaigning for the government to provide £20m to support a five-year Lobular Breast Cancer Research Project, which will be carried out by the Manchester Breast Centre, to address the issue. We speak to one woman about her experience with the disease.

I felt fit and healthy'