Managing Breast Cancer

Fewer American women are having mammograms to screen for breast cancer. This is according to a study carried out by the National Cancer Institute and the Center For Disease Control. The opposite had been the case for 20 years before the period of the study with increasing numbers of women having mammograms each year.
Why are less women having mammograms?

There may be several reasons for this decline:

1. Some women may feel that it’s not worth the time, money and inconvenience to have a mammogram especially as the results are sometimes conflicting and difficult to interpret.
2. Lack of health insurance
3. Doubts about how effective mammograms are at reducing the number of deaths from breast cancer
4. The feeling that breast cancer causes fewer deaths and perhaps is more treatable than it used to be
5. With many women coming off combined progesterone/estrogen hormone replacement therapy after results from the WHI (Women’s Health Initiative) showed that it increases risks of developing breast cancer, these women may not see their doctors as often as they used to. As a result, many would not have their usual yearly mammogram.
6. Less aggressive promotion of mammograms by major organizations.
7. Some breast cancer screening centers have closed and there are fewer radiologists trained to read mammograms. If women don’t have a screening center reasonably close to them they may not go for a mammogram.

In spite of the debate over the effectiveness of mammograms and whether there aren’t better screening methods for breast cancer, they have been very useful up till now. For the meantime, having a regular mammogram is still a very good idea.

Categories: Prevention
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A very aggressive form of breast cancer known as inflammatory breast cancer has been found to be more common in obese women compared to women that are overweight or have a normal weight. The more obese a woman is the more aggressive and dangerous the breast cancer is. Breast cancer patients who are overweight or obese are also likely to die sooner.

Obese and overweight patients need more attention  because they are also more likely to get other cancers like leukemia, multiple myeloma, thyroid cancer, colon and kidney cancers as well as breast cancer.

Categories: Prevention, Risk factors
Tags: breast cancer, inflammatory breast cancer, obesity, overweight

Women with the BRCA1 and BRCA2 abnormalities in their genes have been found to have a high risk of developing breast cancer in their lifetime,up to 80%, compared with women who do not have these abnormalities who have an estimated 12% chance of developing breast cancer in their lifetime. Some women at very high risk of developing breast cancer have been advised to consider removing their ovaries to reduce their risk of developing breast cancer later.

A recent study has shown that women who have inherited the BRCA2 are less likely to develop breast cancer if they have their ovaries removed than women with the BRCA1 abnormality. Women at high risk of developing breast cancer have a very difficult decision to make when it comes to removing their ovaries to reduce the risk of developing breast cancer. These findings may help to make the decision easier for women who are at high risk of developing breast cancer.

Categories: Prevention
Tags: breast cancer prevention, breast cancer symptoms, breast cancer treatment, signs of breast cancer