Now: 1 In 8 Women Diagnosed With Breast Cancer Komens More Than Pink Walk Spreads Awareness
MILWAUKEE — October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Susan G. Komen’s More Than Pink walk is coming to Milwaukee on Sunday.
More than 5,000 women are estimated to be diagnosed with breast cancer this year alone. Nikki Panico, Susan G. Komen Wisconsin executive director, knows firsthand just how important it is to continue to raise awareness. “I’m not a stranger to the disease,” she said.
Panico lost her mom and aunt to breast cancer in 2008. The two died a month apart and the next year, Panico was diagnosed with the disease at the age of 39.
More than 10 years later, Panico is still here and is now a champion for other families battling the disease. “I was so lucky. I had great health insurance, a supportive family, access to the best doctors, but everyone does not,” she said.
Since 2012 she’s been working with Susan G. Komen to make an impact, raising money and awareness for cancer research and to support those who can’t afford treatment.
“In my mom’s specific example, her very first chemo appointment she was denied the drug because her insurance didn’t carry it and I knew she’s not the only one,” said Panico.
The number of breast cancer screenings declined during the pandemic, so ahead of this year’s More Than Pink Walk, she wants to encourage everyone to take charge of their health.
The walk is scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 9 at Henry Meier Festival Park. The opening ceremony begins at 9 a.m. CBS 58’s Natalie Shepherd is slated to emcee. .
What Is Niehs Doing
NIEHS plays a leadership role in funding and conducting studies on the ways in which environmental exposures increase breast cancer risk. This research seeks to understand the role of environmental agents, such as toxic chemicals, in the initiation and progression of cancer, as well as genetic susceptibility. Identifying and reducing contact with environmental factors linked to breast cancer presents tremendous opportunity to prevent this disease.
Sister Study The NIEHS Sister Study has recruited more than 50,000 sisters of women with breast cancer from the U.S. and Puerto Rico. This landmark observational study is looking at lifestyle and environmental exposures, as well as genetic and biological factors that may increase breast cancer risk. Important findings from this study follow.
Two Sister Study An offshoot of the Sister Study, this study focuses on breast cancer in women younger than 50, who may have different breast cancer risk factors than older women. Approximately 1,300 women with young-onset breast cancer are participating, along with their sisters from the Sister Study and their biological parents. Some results from the study include the following.
In-house NIEHS researchers have also studied how environmental exposures can interact with genetic factors to affect breast cancer risk.
Some hallmark findings from BCERP follow.
Fact : Shift Work May Increase Risk Of Breast Cancer
The International Agency for Research on Cancer recently concluded that women who worked night shifts for 30 years or more were twice as likely to develop breast cancer. However, women who work nights are advised not to panic. Itâs worth noting that no link was found between higher breast cancer risk and periods of night work which were shorter than 30 years.
All photography is for illustrative purposes only and all persons depicted are models.
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Pearls And Other Issues
Breast cancer patients are advised to be followed up for life to detect early recurrence and spread. Yearly or biannual follow-up mammography is recommended for the treated and the other breast. The patient must be informed that they must visit a breast clinic if they have any suspicious manifestations. Currently, there is no role for repeated measurements of tumor markers or doing follow-up imaging other than mammography.
In 8 Women Will Be Diagnosed With Breast Cancer In Life Doctors Encourage Screening
AMARILLO, Texas October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and doctors cant say it enough, get screened and do it regularly.
The average age is at 40, said Teresa Baker, M.D., an OB/GYN at Texas Tech Physicians. A woman should start with screening mammograms. However, that changes if she has family history of breast cancer, or obviously, if she finds anything thats of concern to her.
The American Cancer Society says nearly 288,000 new cases of breast cancer will be diagnosed in American women this year.
For minority women, the risk could be higher.
Its definitely theres no question that African-American women have an increased risk of what we call inflammatory breast cancers. So theres, those are really aggressive and fast growing breast cancers that show up younger. So obviously, you should talk about family history, Dr. Baker emphasized.
Why is family history so important?
When you come in and talk to your care provider, thats the first thing theyre going to want to know is what family members have had breast cancer, how old were they when they were diagnosed? What kinds of breast cancers are, she explained.
What are the signs to look for?
The major sign that women would find is if they feel a lump, or they see an area on their breasts thats changed. So we encourage women to look at their breasts and to put their hands up and put their hands on their hips and kind of flex and see if the breast itself is changing, she told us.
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Breast Cancer Stats In Australia
Breast cancer is the second most commonly diagnosed cancer in Australia. Approximately 57 Australians are diagnosed each and every day. That equates to over 20,000 Australians diagnosed with breast cancer each year.
1 in 7 women are diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime.
About 1 in 600 men are diagnosed in their lifetime.
Around 1000 young women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year, equivalent to about 3 young women each day.
In 2022, over 3,200 Australian will pass away from breast cancer . Approximately one woman under the age of 40 is expected to die each week from breast cancer.
Thats 9 Australians a day dying from the disease.
In the last 10 years, breast cancer diagnosis have increased by 33%.
Since the National Breast Cancer Foundation started funding in 1994, the five-year survival rates have improved from 76% to 92%.
Weve come a long way. But theres still progress to be made.
Thats why were committed to funding a broad spectrum of research to help understand risk factors, develop new ways to detect and treat breast cancer, improve quality of life for breast cancer patients, improve treatment outcomes and ultimately save lives.
Our mission: Zero Deaths from breast cancer.
Fact : Most Women Now Survive Breast Cancer
Huge progress has been made in recent years in breast cancer. In fact, breast cancer management across risk assessment, prevention, surgery, radiation, and other treatment, has changed dramatically. Death rates from breast cancer in more developed countries have been declining in recent years, and now survival rates are 80% or over in countries like the US, Sweden and Japan. However, survival rates remain below 40% in low-income countries.
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What Is The Average American Womans Risk Of Being Diagnosed With Breast Cancer At Different Ages
Many women are more interested in the risk of being diagnosed with breast cancer at specific ages or over specific time periods than in the risk of being diagnosed at some point during their lifetime. Estimates by decade of life are also less affected by changes in incidence and mortality rates than longer-term estimates. The SEER report estimates the risk of developing breast cancer in 10-year age intervals . According to the current report, the risk that a woman will be diagnosed with breast cancer during the next 10 years, starting at the following ages, is as follows:
- Age 30 . . . . . . 0.49%
- Age 40 . . . . . . 1.55%
- Age 50 . . . . . . 2.40%
- Age 60 . . . . . . 3.54%
- Age 70 . . . . . . 4.09%
These risks are averages for the whole population. An individual womans breast cancer risk may be higher or lower depending on known factors, as well as on factors that are not yet fully understood. To calculate an individual womans estimated breast cancer risk, health professionals can use the Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Tool, which takes into account several known breast cancer risk factors.
Latest Breast Cancer Data
Breast cancer is the most commonly occurring cancer in women and the most common cancer overall. There were more than 2.26 million new cases of breast cancer in women in 2020.
The 10 countries with the highest rates of breast cancer in women and the highest number of deaths from breast cancer in women in 2020 are shown in the tables below.
ASR = age-standardised rates. These are a summary measure of the rate of disease that a population would have if it had a standard age structure. Standardisation is necessary when comparing populations that differ with respect to age because age has a powerful influence on the risk of dying from cancer.
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Trends In Breast Cancer Deaths
Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in women. The chance that a woman will die from breast cancer is about 1 in 39 .
Since 2007, breast cancer death rates have been steady in women younger than 50, but have continued to decrease in older women. From 2013 to 2018, the death rate went down by 1% per year.
These decreases are believed to be the result of finding breast cancer earlier through screening and increased awareness, as well as better treatments.
Example Of The Impact Of A Relative Risk
Using our example of the exercise study above, we can show how absolute risks affect the number of extra cases.
Inactive women have a 25 percent higher risk of breast cancer than active women .
Since older women are more likely to get breast cancer, a lack of exercise has a greater impact on breast cancer risk in older women than in younger women.
First, lets look at the women in the study ages 70-74 years.
The study finds 500 women per 100,000 who are inactive develop breast cancer in one year. This is the absolute risk for women with the risk factor, lack of exercise.
The study also shows 400 women per 100,000 who are active develop breast cancer in one year. This is the absolute risk for women without the risk factor.
The relative risk is 1.25 for women who are inactive compared to those who are active.
Among women ages 70-74, being inactive led to 100 more cases of breast cancer per 100,000 women in one year .
Now lets look at the women in the study ages 20-29.
The study finds 5 women per 100,000 who were inactive developed breast cancer in one year. And, 4 women per 100,000 who were active got breast cancer.
Here again, the relative risk is 1.25.
However, in women ages 20-29, being inactive led to only 1 extra case of breast cancer per 100,000 women .
So, the same relative risk of 1.25 led to many more extra cases of breast cancer in the older women than in the younger women .
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Risk Of Breast Cancer Across Different Ages
The risk of a woman being diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime is 1 in 7. The majority of breast cancer cases, about 80%, occur in women over the age of 50.
But breast cancer still occurs in young women, with close to 1000 women under the age of 40 projected to be diagnosed with the disease in 2022.
Breast Cancer In Young Women
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the United States. About 1 in 8 women will get breast cancer during her life.
Although breast cancer mostly occurs among older women, in rare cases breast cancer does affect women under the age of 45. About 9% of all new cases of breast cancer in the United States are found in women younger than 45 years of age.
Breast cancer in young women is
- More likely to be hereditary than breast cancer in older women.
- More likely to be found at a later stage, and is often more aggressive and difficult to treat.
- Often coupled with unique issues, including concerns about body image, fertility, finances, and feelings of isolation.
All women are at risk for getting breast cancer, but some things can raise a womans risk for getting breast cancer before age 45. Learning what factors increase your chance of getting breast cancer is an important first step in assessing your risk. Learning the symptoms of breast cancer also may also help you know when to talk to your doctor.
Many women who have a mastectomy have the option of having the shape of the removed breast rebuilt.external icon
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Differences By Race And Ethnicity
Some variations in breast cancer can be seen between racial and ethnic groups. For example,
- The median age of diagnosis is slightly younger for Black women compared to white women 63 years old).
- Black women have the highest death rate from breast cancer. This is thought to be partially because about 1 in 5 Black women with breast cancer have triple-negative breast cancer – more than any other racial/ethnic group.
- Black women have a higher chance of developing breast cancer before the age of 40 than white women.
- At every age, Black women are more likely to die from breast cancer than any other race or ethnic group.
- White and Asian/Pacific Islander women are more likely to be diagnosed with localized breast cancer than Black, Hispanic, and American Indian/Alaska Native women.
- Asian/Pacific Islanders have the lowest death rate from breast cancer.
- American Indian/Alaska Natives have the lowest rates of developing breast cancer.
What Is Secondary Breast Cancer
Secondary breast cancer is when breast cancer spreads from the breast to other parts of the body, becoming incurable. Breast cancer most commonly spreads to the bones, brain, lungs or liver.
While it cannot be cured, there are treatments that can help control certain forms of the disease for some time and relieve symptoms to help people live well for as long as possible.
There are an estimated 35,000 people living with secondary breast cancer in the UK. In around 5% of women, breast cancer has already spread by the time it is diagnosed.
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How Many People Survive Breast Cancer
- Almost nine in ten of women survive breast cancer for five years or more.
- Breast cancer survival is improving and has doubled in the past 40 years in the UK due to a combination of improvements in treatment and care, earlier detection through screening and a focus on targets, including faster diagnosis.
- An estimated 600,000 people are alive in the UK after a diagnosis of breast cancer. This is predicted to rise to 1.2 million in 2030.
For many the overwhelming emotional and physical effects of the disease can be long-lasting.
Every year around 11,500women and 85 men die from breast cancer in the UK thats nearly 1,000 deaths each month, 31 each day or one every 45 minutes.
Breast cancer is the fourth most common cause of cancer death in the UK.
Breast cancer is a leading cause of death in women under 50 in the UK.
Relative Risks Greater Than 1
A relative risk between 1 and 1.99 may be presented in several ways.
For example, in the exercise study above, the relative risk was 1.25.
You may see:
- Inactive women have a relative risk of 1.25 compared to active women.
- Inactive women have a 25 percent higher risk of breast cancer compared to active women.
- Inactive women have a 1.25-fold increased risk of breast cancer compared to active women.
When a relative risk is 2 or more, its often presented as the number of times the risk is increased.
For example, women with atypical hyperplasia have a relative risk of about 4 compared to women without atypical hyperplasia.
You may see:
- Women with atypical hyperplasia have 4 times the risk of breast cancer of women without atypical hyperplasia.
- Theres a 4-fold increase in the risk of breast cancer among women with atypical hyperplasia compared to women without atypical hyperplasia.
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No History Of Breastfeeding
If you breastfed, your risk of developing breast cancer may be reduced, especially if you did it for a year or longer. Breast cancer reduction is just one of many benefits associated with breastfeeding. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends breastfeeding for about the first six months of life, then continuing to breastfeed, supplementing with appropriate foods, for one year or longer.
What to do: Consider breastfeeding, if possible, as it also protects your baby from many diseases.
What Causes Breast Cancer
Breast cancer is caused when the DNA in breast cells mutate or change, disabling specific functions that control cell growth and division. In many cases, these mutated cells die or are attacked by the immune system. But some cells escape the immune system and grow unchecked, forming a tumor in the breast.
The key to lowering your risk for breast cancer is to focus most of your prevention efforts on those modifiable risk factors, and to be proactive in various ways to monitor the ones you cant change.
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