By Karla Goodhart
Breast cancer has affected most of us in some way. This month we will use our news site as a tool for spreading awareness and information about the disease. Topics will include basics about breast cancer, a primer on diagnosis and treatment methods, and helping a loved one cope emotionally with the disease. We start with an overview of breast cancer.
About Breast Cancer
Breast cancer is the second most common cancer in women, second only to skin cancer, according to the National Cancer Institute. It is also one of the most treatable cancers. This cancer, which mostly affects women but can also be found in men, occurs when breast cells grow out of control and form a tumor.
By the Numbers
More than 250,000 people were diagnosed with breast cancer in 2018, according to the National Cancer Institute, while about 3.5 million women were living with breast cancer. About 40,000 of those cases ended in death. Around 12.4 percent of women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetimes.
However, breast cancer is generally very treatable, and almost 90 percent of women with breast cancer are alive five years after their diagnosis. The likelihood of survival depends largely on the stage of the breast cancer at diagnosis; 62 percent of cases are diagnosed at the localized stage, which means it’s only found in one part of the body. The five-year survival for localized breast cancer is almost 99 percent. When the cancer has metastasized to other parts of the body, it becomes harder to treat.
Causes
While there is a lot we don’t know about the causes of breast cancer, family history has been shown to be a factor. Having a benign breast disease; dense breast tissue; exposure of breast tissue to estrogen caused by early menstruation, older age at first birth or never giving birth or starting menopause at a late age; and taking hormones all have been shown to be risk factors. There is also evidence that drinking alcohol and obesity can be risk factors for breast cancer. As with all cancer, older age is a risk factor, though an increasing number of younger women are being diagnosed with breast cancer, which is thought to be related to a gene mutation.
While there are no surefire ways to prevent breast cancer, there are things women can do to reduce their risks, known as protective factors, including: taking estrogen-only hormone therapy after getting a hysterectomy; less exposure of breast tissue to estrogen, caused by early pregnancy or breastfeeding; getting sufficient exercise; and overall healthy eating and lifestyle choices.
The BRCA Gene
Actress Angelina Jolie made headlines in 2013 when she announced she had a double mastectomy despite not having breast cancer.
Instead, she found out she had a genetic mutation in the BRCA gene, which significantly increased her risk of breast cancer.
Her decision jump-started a conversation about whether women should undergo elective surgery to lessen their risk of breast cancer before any diagnosis or the different factors to take into consideration when determining treatments.
What Is It?
According to the Mayo Clinic, the BRCA gene mutation is responsible for 5 to 10 percent of breast cancer cases and about 15 percent of ovarian cancer cases. A blood test can find the mutation in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes. You may consider this form of testing if you have a personal history of breast cancer diagnosed at a young age or affecting both breasts; a personal history of ovarian cancer; a family history of breast, ovarian or pancreatic cancer; or a relative with a known BRCA gene mutation. People who have a close male relative with breast cancer are at greater risk as well. Talk to your doctor about your family history with all types of cancer to get a better understanding of your risk.
What To Do?
If you get a positive result, this does not mean you will develop breast cancer. If you know you’re at greater risk, consider more frequent clinical screenings; taking oral contraceptives, which have been shown to reduce the risk of ovarian cancer; chemoprevention, which is hormonal medication that reduces the risk of breast cancer; or Jolie’s choice to have preventive surgery. This reduces the chance of breast cancer by about 90 percent, according to research. It’s not clear how much it reduces the risk of ovarian cancer.
Who Benefits
Women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer may also benefit from getting the test. The National Cancer Institute discussed a study related to the BRCA mutation, in which women 40 years old and younger who had been diagnosed with breast cancer were tested for the mutation. Of the hundreds of women tested, about a third told researchers it influenced their cancer treatment — 86 percent of those with the mutation had both breasts removed even though both were not affected by the cancer, while 53 percent also had their ovaries and fallopian tubes removed.
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