It’s officially October: the month of tricks, treats and delicious pumpkin spice drinks!
But aside from being scary season, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and it’s the perfect time to get a discounted (or free) breast cancer screening from your provider. health care.
Naturally, a breast cancer screening can be a scary thing, especially if it’s your first time or if you haven’t had one in a while. But breast cancer screenings are something everyone should take advantage of because prevention is the key to stopping it.
In this special series, we’ll discuss the importance of breast cancer awareness, starting with its main causes.
How important is breast cancer awareness?
Breast cancer is a disease that occurs when cancerous cells grow in the breast. Eventually, these cells can begin to grow, taking over healthy breast tissue, and over time they can make their way throughout the body through blood or lymph vessels.
When cancer cells move into the rest of the body, they can start damaging other tissues – this is called metastasis.
Breast cancer is a disease that affects
1 in 8 womenand it is the leading cause of death among women worldwide, with 50% of cases affecting women over the age of 60.
Although there is no cure for breast cancer, it can be treated with methods such as chemotherapy and mastectomy. Because cancer spreads over time, it is important to catch it as early as possible, which is why breast cancer awareness is crucial.
What is the number one reason for breast cancer?
Generally speaking, aging is the leading cause of breast cancer in women. Indeed, the longer we live, the higher the likelihood of being exposed to mutations in the body. Also, our body becomes less resistant to genetic damage over time and the repair process begins to slow down.
According to
American Cancer Societyapproximately 80% of breast cancer cases worldwide occur in women over the age of 50. What’s more: 2 out of 3 invasive breast cancers occur in women over the age of 55.
For this reason, it is crucial that we become more vigilant about breast cancer as we age. That’s why it’s
advised
that women start having annual mammograms after the age of 40.
Main causes of breast cancer: what we cannot control
When it comes to stopping breast cancer, prevention really is our first line of defense.
Along with receiving regular screenings, it helps to understand some of the major causes of breast cancer.
First, let’s start with some of the causes that are beyond our control. While these causes can be frustrating (you can’t change your genetics), they can better inform your conscience.
Certain treatments and medications
Certain treatments and medications have been shown to increase the risk of breast cancer in women. According to
CDCwomen who had radiation therapy to the chest before they were 30 have a higher risk of getting breast cancer later in life.
In addition, women who have been exposed to certain drugs, such as
diethylstilbestrol
(DES), tend to have a higher risk of developing breast cancer.
Dense breast tissue
When the breasts are denser, it usually means that they have a higher composition of connective tissue than fatty tissue. When there is more connective tissue in the breasts, it is sometimes harder for mammograms to detect tumors, which increases the risk of developing breast cancer.
personal story
Personal history plays a major role in the development of breast cancer, especially in women with certain non-cancerous breast diseases. For women who have had breast cancer in the past, developing a second breast cancer is much more likely.
Additionally, certain non-cancerous breast diseases, such as atypical hyperplasia, are associated with a higher risk of breast cancer, while reproductive history also plays a role. Menstruation before age 12 and the onset of menopause after age 55 expose women to hormones for longer, increasing their risk of breast cancer.
family history
Family history has been shown to have particularly strong links with breast cancer. Women who have a mother, sister or daughter with breast cancer have a higher risk of developing breast cancer themselves.
Genetic mutation
Genetic mutation is one of the leading causes of breast cancer in women worldwide. In particular, women who have inherited the changes
BRCA1 and BRCA2
genes have a higher risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer.
Main causes of breast cancer: what we can control
Now that we have established some of the main causes of breast cancer beyond our control, let’s talk about some of the causes that we can manage in our daily lives.
Activity levels
It has been found that people with a sedentary lifestyle are more likely to develop breast cancer. According to
National Cancer Instituteit was concluded in a 2016 analysis that the most physically active women had a 12-21% lower risk of breast cancer than those who were the least physically active.
Weight
According to
CDC, overweight or obese women after menopause have a higher risk of developing breast cancer than those who maintain a healthy weight. Women can maintain a healthy weight through a balanced diet, regular physical activity and controlled stress levels.
Alcohol and tobacco
Studies have indicated that the risk of developing breast cancer in women may increase with
alcohol consumption.
It has also been suggested that smoking can alter hormone levels, which can increase the risk of breast cancer.
The main cause of breast cancer that almost everyone ignores
Similar to how we overlooked the environment as a cause of breast cancer, social inequality is a major factor that almost everyone ignores.
Therefore, we tend to ignore the issues that lie behind social inequalities, such as racial, economic, and political injustices.
Our environment is directly linked to where we live and work; therefore, marginalized communities tend to bear the brunt of it, whether they live in urban or rural areas. According to
American Cancer Societyblack women are more likely to die from breast cancer than white women nationwide, even though they are statistically less likely to develop it.
These impacts are even more detrimental to low-income women, who are more exposed to environmental stress and toxins.
In addition, low-income women have less access to quality health care and healthy, whole foods. Additionally, we have a limited understanding of how breast cancer affects different ethnicities and income levels.
Although a healthy lifestyle can have positive implications against the causes of breast cancer, this ignores the fact that not all women have the opportunity to make healthy choices.
When we focus on diet and exercise as defenses against breast cancer, we forget about social justices in the United States and their impact on access to a healthy lifestyle for so many women who live here.
If we are to discuss the root causes of breast cancer, it is crucial that we pursue the underlying systemic changes in order to combat it.
