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Breast cancer is possibly the most frightening of all "women's diseases.” Although other diseases may claim higher mortality rates, or strike larger numbers of women, breast cancer is unique in the heavy toll is often extracts from even its 'survivors.’
Many factors can influence a woman's risk of getting breast cancer, but having one or more risk factors does not necessarily mean that a woman will get breast cancer. Some women with one or more breast cancer risk factors never develop the disease, while the majority of women with breast cancer have no apparent risk factors. Even when a woman has a risk factor, there is no way to prove that it was the actual cause of breast cancer. Not all factors increase a woman's chance of developing breast cancer equally. Some factors (such as inheriting a breast cancer-related gene— found only in 5-10% of all women) increase a woman's risk of breast cancer more than others.
Some women have many risk factors and never get breast cancer and some women have few or no risk factors but do get the disease. Risk factors help to identify women who may benefit most from screening or other preventive measures. Individual women should work with their clinicians to determine their own personal risk of breast cancer based upon their own circumstances.
| Factors that increase risk of developing breast cancer |
Degree of change |
| Inherited abnormalities in BRCA1/BRCA2 |
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| Mother/sister with breast or ovarian CA |
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| Older age |
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| Being younger than 12 when first menstrual period occurs |
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| Being older than 30 years at birth of first child |
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| Older age at menopause |
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| Alcohol intake (2 to 5 drinks per day) |
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| Increased breast density on mammogram |
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| Increased bone density |
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| Being obese |
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| Hyperplasia without atypia on breast biopsy |
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| Hyperplasia with atypia on breast biopsy |
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| Nocturnal light exposure (i.e., night shift work) |
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| : minor risk increase; : moderate risk increase; : strong risk increase |
Most breast cancer occurs in women who have no identifiable risk factors.
Risk Factors You Can’t Change
- Gender
- Increasing age
- Genetic predisposition (5-7% of all cases)
- Family history in first degree relative
- Personal history of breast cancer
- Hormonal factors
- Menstrual periods before 12 and after 55
- History of benign breast disease that required biopsies
- Having dense breasts
- Radiation to chest for Hodgkin’s Lymphoma as a child or young adult
- Being tall
Risk Factors You Can Change
- Weight gain
- Smoking
- Excessive Alcohol intake—Less than 2 beers, 3 glasses of wine, or 2 shots of liquor per day
- Poor diet— Eat fruits, vegetables, complex carbohydrates, fish and/or organic grass- fed meat; organic preferred
- Lack of physical activity
- Use of birth control pills or hormone replacement therapy
- Overuse of antibiotics
- Exposure to estrogen and estrogen mimics—Limit toxic chemicals in your environment
- Do not use pesticides or organochlorines
- Exposure to electric light at night—Sleeping in darkness keeps melatonin levels high
*Additionally, having a child or children before age 30 and breast feeding are considered protective factors; Not having children or delayed childbirth until after age 30 are considered risk factors.
Risk factors are NOT absolute indicators.
No one factor alone or in any known combination determines whether you will or will not develop breast cancer.
Risk in Perspective—Birth to 95
- Heart Disease:1 in 2
- Diabetes:1 in 3
- Alcoholism:1 in 3
- Stroke:1 in 5
- Breast Cancer:1 in 7
Courtesy of Journal of the National Cancer Institute
RISK ASSESSMENT TOOLS— Many factors can affect a woman's risk for breast cancer. The relative importance of each of these factors can be confusing.
There are several tools available:
NCI web site at http://www.cancer.gov/bcrisktool/ In most cases, a woman and her clinician can use a scoring system from the National Cancer Institute to estimate personal risk. Calculation of the score entails multiplying a woman's baseline risk (based upon her age and race/ethnicity) and the risks associated with five key factors. The individual's risk is compared with a woman the same age who has an "average risk" of developing breast cancer.
Harvard Center for Cancer Prevention Web site, "Your Disease Risk": http://www.yourdiseaserisk.harvard.edu After answering a few questions about age, history of cancer, height, weight, reproductive history, medical history and family history, a calculation is made of breast-cancer risk.
INFORMATION — Your healthcare provider is the best source of information for questions and concerns related to your medical problem. Because no two patients are exactly alike and recommendations can vary from one person to another, it is important to seek guidance from a provider who is familiar with your individual situation.
National Cancer Institute - 1-800-4-CANCER, (http://www.nci.nih.gov)
People Living With Cancer: The official patient information website of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, (http://www.plwc.org/portal/site/PLWC)
National Comprehensive Cancer Network, (http://www.nccn.org/patients/patient_gls.asp)
American Cancer Society - 1-800-ACS-2345, (http://www.cancer.org)
National Library of Medicine, (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/healthtopics.html)
Sources
Breast Cancer Options: http://www.breastcanceroptions.org
Up-To-Date: http://patients.uptodate.com"
Imaginis: HYPERLINK "http://www.imaginis.com/breasthealth/bc_risks.asp
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