Preventative Tips for Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Each year in the United States about 255,000 cases of breast cancer are diagnosed in women. Men are not immune, there are about 2,300 cases diagnosed in men each year. Like women, male breast cancer risk increases with age, and there are also risk factors such as family history of breast cancer. About 42,000 women and 500 men in the United States die each year from breast cancer (National Breast Cancer Coalition). 

While breast cancer in younger women is rare, it is still important for women between the ages of 15 to 39 to perform self-examinations and seek medical advice if they notice a lump or have a higher risk due to family history. Early detection is key, and breast cancer can still occur even in younger women, according to Yale Medicine radiologist Liva Andrejeva-Wright, MD (Yale Medicine). 

What can you do to Reduce the Risk of Breast Cancer? 

Many factors over the course of a lifetime can influence your breast cancer risk. You can’t change some factors, such as getting older or your family history, but you can help lower your risk of breast cancer by taking care of your health in the following ways, according to the CDC: 

• Keep a healthy weight 

• Exercise regularly 

• Don’t drink alcohol, or limit alcoholic drinks 

• If you are taking hormone replacement therapy or oral contraceptives (birth control pills), ask your doctor about the risks and find out if it is right for you 

• Breastfeed your children, if possible 

• If you have a family history of breast cancer or inherited changes in your BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, talk to your doctor about other ways to lower your risk (Breast Cancer Prevention) 

Early Detection is Key! 

The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) is an organization made up of doctors and disease experts who look at research on the best way to prevent diseases and make recommendations on how doctors can help patients avoid diseases or find them early. Getting mammograms regularly can help detect breast cancer at an early stage and is when treatment has a better success rate. Mammograms detect irregularities in the breast years before physical symptoms develop. In April 2024, the USPSTF finalized new recommendations for breast cancer screening which advises women to start their regular mammogram screenings at 40 years old instead of the previously recommended age of 50 (Breast Cancer Research Foundation).  

According to the American Cancer Society, results from many decades of research clearly show that women who have regular mammograms are more likely to have breast cancer found early, are less likely to need aggressive treatment like surgery to remove the breast (mastectomy) and chemotherapy and are more likely to be cured (American Cancer Society). To discuss if scheduling a mammogram is right for you, use our provider search tool to search for a primary care provider, or specialist at healthcarehighways.com/provider-search. 

References: 

1. Yale Medicine. "Too Young to Screen: Breast Cancer in Younger Women." Retrieved September 10, 2024 from  https://www.yalemedicine.org/news/breast-cancer-younger-women 
2. American Cancer Society. "Recommendations for the Early Detection of Breast Cancer." Retrieved September 10, 2024 from https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/breast-cancer/screening-tests-and-early-detection/american-cancer-society-recommendations-for-the-early-detection-of-breast-cancer.html 
3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Breast Cancer Prevention." Retrieved September 10, 2024 from https://www.cdc.gov/breast-cancer/prevention/?CDC_AAref_Val=https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/breast/basic_info/prevention.htm 
4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Breast Cancer Screening." Retrieved September 10, 2024 from  https://www.cdc.gov/breast-cancer/screening/?CDC_AAref_Val=https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/breast/basic_info/screening.htm 
5. Breast Cancer Research Foundation. "USPSTF Releases New Breast Cancer Screening Guidelines for 2023." Retrieved September 10, 2024 from https://www.bcrf.org/blog/uspstf-new-breast-cancer-screening-guidelines-2023 
6. National Breast Cancer Coalition. "Facts & Figures." Stop Breast Cancer, 2024, Retrieved September 12, 2024 from https://www.stopbreastcancer.org/information-center/facts-figures/.