Facts About Breast Cancer

Facts about breast cancer explained simply and clearly so everyone can understand

These are the facts about breast cancer. Besides skin cancer, breast cancer is the most common cancer found in women. Among Hispanic women, it is the leading cause of death. It is the second most common cause of death among most other major ethnic groups.

This translates to more than 186,000 diagnoses of breast cancer in the US in a single year. Of these, more than 41,000 women have died of breast cancer in a given year. This means you have around an 80 percent chance of surviving your breast cancer. The breast cancer survival rate is about 80 percent after five years.

Men get breast cancer, too. It usually happens between ages 60 and 70 years. Less than one percent of breast cancer is found in men. The signs of breast cancer in men are the same as the signs of breast cancer in women.

Prevention of Breast Cancer

You can have a mammogram that shows pictures of breast cancer before a woman can feel it. If you are at high risk, you can have your breasts removed and implants placed in a breast cancer reconstruction procedure. This is a drastic measure but it works if you are at a very high risk.

Doctors can do blood tests now to see if you are at high risk for breast cancer. The test looks for abnormalities in the brca1 and brca2 genes, indication high risk. Abnormalities in the genes are what causes breast cancer in some women.

Mammograms are not prevention of breast cancer. Instead it provides pictures of breast cancer when the breast cancer is really small. A mammogram is done as a screening test for early breast cancer.

What causes breast cancer isn’t really known. We know that some factors like age, estrogen, alcohol and obesity play a role in breast cancer but exactly how they cause breast cancer isn’t clear. If you maintain a healthy weight, refrain from taking estrogen supplements and exercise, you can prevent breast cancer the best possible way.

Facts About Breast Cancer And Who Gets It

Older women are more likely to get breast cancer than younger women. White women get more breast cancer than other ethnic groups. On the other hand, African-American women have poor breast cancer survival rate and are more likely to die from the disease.

Your family history is important in what causes breast cancer. If you inherit a bad gene profile from a family member, you have a strong chance of getting breast cancer. If you start menstruating before age 12 or have menopause after 55, you have a better chance of getting breast cancer. Women with a higher risk for breast cancer should look for signs of breast cancer on a regular basis.

Women taking hormone replacement therapy have a higher than average chance of getting breast cancer. No one knows if estrogen is what causes breast cancer or if it just makes abnormal cancer cells grow faster. Natural plant estrogens may or may not contribute to breast cancer.

Incidence of Breast Cancer

Breast cancer has increased since 1975. It increased in the 1980s and in the late 1990s. It decreased by 2 percent in the 2000s but this was a slight change compared to the previous increases. Researchers believe the increase is due to delayed childbearing and the increased use of mammograms. The increased use of mammograms artificially increased the rate of breast cancer.

The reduction in the rate of breast cancer in the 2000s was due to women stopping the use of estrogen replacement therapy. The breast cancer survival rate has increased because breast cancer is found earlier than before and treatment techniques are better. The mammogram, which takes pictures of breast cancer, is a much more common procedure than ever before.

Some of the increased incidence of breast cancer has come from the aging population and because of increased obesity in the last several years. Some women still take estrogen replacement therapy and this contributes to an increased risk of breast cancer. Survival rate statistics remain positive.

Facts About Breast Cancer: Signs of Breast Cancer

Sometimes, there are few signs of breast cancer. The mammogram takes pictures of breast cancer and can find it without other signs of breast cancer.

Other signs of breast cancer include:

• bloody discharge from the nipple,
• finding of a hard, scar-like lump in the breast,
• finding swelling of the breast or dimpling of the skin.

A woman can find these things on breast self exam. A doctor can find them on an exam at the office. If signs of breast cancer are found, further testing is required, such as a biopsy of the abnormal breast tissue.