Doctor, how can I determine what my risks are for getting breast cancer?
Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women other than skin cancer. After lung cancer, it is the second leading cause of cancer death in women. More than 200,000 women in the United States will develop invasive breast cancer and 40,000 women will die from the disease this year. However, there are more than
2 million breast cancer survivors in the United States. For every nine women, one will develop breast cancer during her lifetime.
A risk factor is anything that increases your chance of getting a disease such as cancer. There are risk factors that you cannot change and risk factors that you can change.
Risk factors that you cannot change would be your gender and your age. The majority of breast cancers occur in women, and more than 70 percent in women over the age of 50. You cannot change your family history or your genes. Ten percent of breast cancers occur because of certain changes or mutations in genes. BRCA1 and BRCA2 are the most commonly detected gene mutations. Women with these genes have a 40 to 80 percent chance of getting breast cancer during their lifetime. They are also at an increased risk for ovarian cancer.
Other risk factors that you cannot change include: previous abnormal breast biopsy, previous chest or breast radiation, treatment with DES and your race. Breast cancer is more common in Caucasian women. Also, starting your periods before age 12 or starting menopause after age 50 increase your risks of getting breast cancer.
There are risk factors that you can control that impact your risks for breast cancer. Having children and having them before age 30 can lower your risks. Alcohol consumption, being overweight and lack of exercise can increase your risks. Breast-feeding and pregnancy can lower your risks. Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) increases your risks.
Overall, any circumstance where there has been prolonged estrogen exposure can increase your risk of getting breast cancer: early menses, late menopause, HRT, never being pregnant, being overweight (increased exposure because of increased body fat) and alcohol (affects how the liver breaks down estrogen in the body).
There are some uncertain risk factors such as environmental pollutants (pesticides and PCBs), smoking, abortions and silicone implants.
Most breast cancer cases occur in women who have no identifiable risk factors and in women with no family history of the disease.
Every woman is at risk, but every woman does not have the same risk. Being a woman and having breasts puts you at risk. Take control to lower your risks. As breast cancer cannot be prevented, early detection is the key to a cure and longer survival. Identify your risks and discuss them with your health-care provider.