Breast Cancer Risk Factors and Survival
According to statistics, one in eight women will be diagnosed with some form of breast cancer.
Breast cancer risk factors beyond your control are:
Age and sex. With age the probability of developing breast cancer increases. Being a woman older than 50 is a breast cancer risk factor by itself, as most cases of advanced cancers are found in this group. Breast cancer risk for a man is 100 times lower than that for a woman.
Family history. Breast cancer genes can be passed though generations, so if any of your blood relatives had breast, colon, ovarian or uterine cancer, you run the risk of developing breast cancer. Breast cancer statistics show that about 20–30% of patients had this disease in their family history.
Genes. Certain human genes – BRCA1 and BRCA2 in particular – display defects that make the carrier more susceptible to cancer of the breast. Both these genes are responsible for protecting your body from cancer by producing certain proteins. However, when the gene is defective it’s unable to perform this function properly, therefore the risk of developing cancer increases dramatically. In fact, breast cancer statistics show that the probability of developing the disease in a lifetime is 80% for a woman with a defected gene.
Breast cancer may also be connected with other defects in genes, for example, the ATM gene, the CHEK-2 gene and the p53 tumor suppressor gene. However, these cases do not occur frequently.
Menstrual cycle. Females that start menstruating before 12 have an increased breast cancer risk , so do females with late menopause starting after 55.
There are also breast cancer risks that you can influence:
Alcohol. The risk of developing breast cancer increases if you drink alcohol as often as 1–2 glasses a day.
Pregnancy and childbirth. Females that are childless or had children after 30 are more likely to develop cancer of the breast. Pregnancy at a young age considerably lowers the risk of breast cancer.
Use of diethylstilbestrol. If at some point diethylstilbestrol was taken, the risk of developing breast cancer after 40 is higher. This drug was popular in the 40s, 50s and 60s, so women who are now older than fifty are at risk.
Hormone replacement therapy. Receiving hormone replacement therapy (which is sometimes used to deal with menopause symptoms) for several years in a row may result in breast cancer.
Excessive weight. Even though no clear connection between developing breast cancer and obesity is found, it has a logical explanation. Women with excessive weight produce bigger amounts of estrogen, which is known for contributing to breast cancer in some cases.
Radiation. Some people receive radiation therapy at quite a young age. While this therapy is absolutely necessary for some conditions, in the long-term it can increase the risk of developing breast cancer, especially if the patient was young at the time of the radiation therapy and didn’t have her breast fully developed.
There is a belief that breast implants, pesticides, induced abortion, antiperspirants and not wearing bras can be a risk factor. However, there is no proof of that.
The National Cancer Institute provides breast cancer support and offers an online engine that will help you establish whether breast cancer risk is a reality for you.
Back to Breast Cancer
