Breast cancer affects one in eight women during their lives. Breast Cancer in the United States than any cancer except lung cancer. In 2008, breast cancer caused 458,503 deaths worldwide. No one knows why some women get breast cancer, but there are several risk factors. So awareness surrounding breast cancer is important.
The chance of getting breast cancer rises when a woman gets older. There are two genes, BRCA1 and BRCA2, that generally increase the risk. Women who have family members with breast or ovarian cancer may wish to be tested. People beginning periods before 13 or going through menopause after age 55 are at a higher risk of getting breast cancer. Being overweight, using hormone replacement therapy, taking birth control pills, drinking alcohol are also taken as risk factors. Not having children or having children the first child after the age of 35 or having dense breasts increases the risk of breast cancer.
Symptoms of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in size or shape of the breast or discharge from a nipple. Redness, scaliness or thickening of the nipple or breast skin is also a symptom of breast cancer. Breast self-exam and mammography can help find breast cancer early when it is most treatable. Treatment may consist of radiation, lumpectomy, mastectomy, chemotherapy and hormone therapy. Men can have breast cancer, too, but the number of cases is small. Breast cancer is usually classified primarily by its histological appearance. Each of these influences the prognosis and can affect treatment response. Each of these influences the prognosis and can affect treatment response. October is breast cancer awareness month, an annual campaign to increase awareness of the disease. During this month people wear pink ribbons to honour survivors, remember those lost to the disease, and support the progress people are making together to defeat breast cancer.