Breast Cancer Risk Factors: What Women Should Watch Out For October 5
Still in line with the observance of National Breast Cancer Awareness this month, we would like to do our part in increasing breast cancer awareness; for this post, we are sharing with readers factors that may carry an increased risk for breast cancer. This list was based on a list from the National Cancer Institute and the American Cancer Society.
The risk factors were categorized into two general sets: these are factors that are due to lifestyle, which can be altered by virtue of changes made in a woman’s daily living habits and choices. The second set of factors list those which one cannot do anything about.
Among the lifestyle-related risk factors are decisions that more women choose for themselves as opposed to their counterparts from fifty years ago. At a slightly higher risk for developing breast cancer are women who do not have children or who decide to have them after the age of 30, when compared to women who get pregnant at least once at an earlier age.
Also at a higher risk are women who recently used birth control pills and, in the case of women who have infants, choose to not breast-feed their babies. Undergoing post-menopausal hormone therapy, obesity, lack of exercise, and daily alcohol intake consisting of two or more glasses each day are also listed as risk factors.
Among the factors that one cannot do anything about is one’s gender, age, and genetic risk factors. Having a history of breast cancer among members of the family is also considered as a factor, as well as having a personal history of battling the disease. From a racial standpoint, Caucasian women are said to be more susceptible to developing the disease when compared to her African-American, Hispanic or Asian sisters. Having dense breast tissue, beginning one’s menstrual period before the age of 12 and experiencing menopause after the age of 55 are considered as risk factors, as are undergoing breast radiation before the age of 30 and being treated with diethylstilbestrol (DES).
In order to understand these factors better and assess whether you are indeed at risk, consult your doctor. He or she will also be in a great position to plan an appropriate action plan and schedule tests that you might need.
Tags: breast cancer awareness, breast cancer detection, breast cancer risk factors, breast cancer risks, breast cancer treatment