Cancer continues to claim victims around the world. One of the most common is breast cancer. The WHO indicates that in 2020, there were more than 2.2 million cases of breast cancer in the world, which usually develops in women over 50 years of age. In Latin America and the Caribbean, the incidence of this malignancy is increasing, reaching women under 45 years of age in whom detection is made in more advanced stages of the disease.
While it is true that progress has been made in prevention campaigns, diagnostic technologies and treatments, breast cancer must be in the sights of every woman and everyone must be aware of the importance of taking an active part in the prevention of this disease that can claim their life. Men, although in an infinitely lower frequency, can also suffer from this neoplasm.
The website breastcancer.com published on 2022, approximately 287,850 new cases of invasive breast cancer are expected to be diagnosed in women in the United States, with 51,400 new cases of noninvasive (in situ) breast cancer. In addition, around 2710 new cases of invasive breast cancer in men are expected to be diagnosed. For men, the lifetime risk of breast cancer is 1 in 833 (Breastcancer.org).
This article focuses on the risk factors that increase a woman's chance of developing breast cancer.
Risk Factors
Risk factors are those that increase the likelihood of developing breast cancer. Knowing those factors and talking to your doctor about them will help you make more informed decisions about lifestyle choices and health care.
Some of these risk factors to consider are:
Age: over 50 years old
Personal history: If you had cancer in one breast you have an increased risk of a new tumor in any of the breasts. Same history of other types of cancer such as ovarian cancer.
Family history: take into consideration that breast cancer may have a hereditary factor. Knowing the history of this or another cancer in the family or close relative is important. This should raise the alert to your doctor for suspicion of an inherited mutation of the breast cancer gene.
Early menstruation and late menopause: History of onset of menstruation before 11 or 12 years of age or onset of menopause after 55 years of age.
Hormone replacement therapy after menopause: increase the risk of breast cancer mainly in women who have received combined estrogen and progestin treatments.
Oral contraceptives: Still a topic of research. Some studies suggest a slight risk for breast cancer and others have shown no link.
Race and ethnicity: It has been observed that white women are more likely to develop breast cancer than black women. However, in women younger than 45, it is more common in blacks than in whites. Hispanic women have a better survival rate than white women. Women of Ashkenazi Jewish heritage also have an increased risk of developing breast cancer. In Chinese women, breast cancer is also the most frequent, however, in this country, the average age is between 45 and 55 years for diagnosis (about 10 or 20 years earlier than European women).
Atypical breast hyperplasia: This diagnosis increases the chance of future breast cancer.
Lobular carcinoma in situ: This diagnosis increases the chance of invasive breast cancer in the future.
Dense breast tissue: This can affect the early detection of a tumo in standard imaging tests.
There is another group of risk factors inherent to lifestyle that contribute to increase the chances of developing breast cancer such as:
Overweight and obesity.
Lack of regular physical activity (moderate exercise at least).
Smoking and drinking alcoholic beverages.
Exposure to excessive radiation at an early age.
Recommendation
As part of the basic arsenal available for the early detection of breast cancer, we suggest keeping in mind these risk factors that will help you, with other actions, such as breast self-examination, mammography and breast ultrasound to detect this malignant disease early. Other recommended studies are magnetic resonance imaging, biopsy, biomarkers and genomic tests, among others. Talking with your doctor about these risk factors is important to formulate a clinical and therapeutic strategy for you.
Prevention and early detection are key pieces in the fight against this scourge. A better quality of life and a better life expectancy are the benefits that can be achieved when you systematically keep breast cancer in the crosshairs.
Sources:
1- American Society of Clinical Oncology. Breast cancer, cáncer.net
2- WHO. Press Center – Breast Cancer, who.int
3- Noticias medicas – El cáncer de mama se diagnostica antes en mujeres chinas,
4- Caracterizacón del cáncer de mama en mujeres de Panamá. Revista médica de
Panamá edición digital, revistasmedicas.org
5- Facts and statistics data on breast cancer, breastcancer.org
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