Causes Of Breast Cancer
Experts are not definitively sure what causes breast cancer. It is hard to say why one person develops the disease while another does not. However, there are some risk factors that impact on a woman's likelihood of developing breast cancer. Having a risk factor does not mean that a woman will get breast cancer. Many women who have risk factors never develop breast cancer.
A report by the American Cancer Society states that these risk factors are:
Getting older - The older a woman gets, the higher her risk of developing breast cancer. Over 80% of all female breast cancers occur among women aged above 50 years.
Race - Overall, white women are slightly more likely to get breast cancer than African-American women. African-American women, though, are more likely to die of breast cancer.
Not having children or having them later in life - Women who have not had children, or who had their first child after age 30, have a slightly higher risk of breast cancer. Being
pregnant many times or pregnant when younger reduces breast cancer risk.
Certain kinds of birth control - Studies have found that women who are using birth control pills or an injectable form of birth control called depot-medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA or Depo-Provera ®) have a slightly greater risk of breast cancer than women who have never used them. This risk seems to go back to normal over time once the pills are stopped.
Not breastfeeding - Some studies have shown that breastfeeding slightly lowers breast cancer risk, especially if breastfeeding lasts 1½ to 2 years.
Genetics - Women who have a close relative who has/had breast or ovarian cancer are more likely to develop breast cancer.
A history of breast cancer - Women who have had breast cancer are more likely to develop the disease again.
Having had certain types of breast lumps - Women who have had some types of benign (non-cancerous) breast lumps are more likely to develop cancer later on.
Dense breast tissue - Women with more dense breast tissue have a greater chance of developing breast cancer.
Estrogen exposure - Women who started having periods earlier or entered menopause later than usual have a higher risk of developing breast cancer. This is because their bodies have been exposed to estrogen for longer. Estrogen exposure begins when periods start, and drops dramatically during the menopause.
Obesity - Post-menopausal obese and overweight women may have a higher risk of developing breast cancer. Experts say that there are higher levels of estrogen in obese menopausal women, which may be the cause of the higher risk.
Height - Taller-than-average women have a slightly greater likelihood of developing breast cancer than shorter-than-average women. Experts are not sure why.
Alcohol consumption - The more alcohol a woman regularly drinks, the higher her risk of developing breast cancer is. The Mayo Clinic says that if a woman wants to drink, she should not exceed one alcoholic beverage per day.
Radiation exposure - Undergoing X-rays and CT scans may raise a woman's risk of developing breast cancer slightly. Scientists at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center found that women who had been treated with radiation to the chest for a childhood cancer have a higher risk of developing breast cancer.
HRT (hormone replacement therapy) - Both forms, combined and estrogen-only HRT therapies may increase a woman's risk of
developing breast cancer slightly. Combined HRT causes a higher risk.
Certain jobs - French researchers found that women who worked at night prior to a first pregnancy had a higher risk of eventually developing breast cancer. Canadian researchers found that certain jobs, especially those that bring the human body into contact with possible carcinogens and endocrine disruptors are linked to a higher risk of developing breast cancer. Examples include bar/gambling, automotive plastics manufacturing, metal-working, food canning and agriculture. They reported their findings in the November 2012 issue of Environmental Health.
Cosmetic implants may undermine breast cancer survival - Women who have cosmetic breast implants and develop breast cancer may have a higher risk of dying prematurely from the disease compared to other females, researchers from Canada reported in the British Medical Journal, May 2013 issue. After warning that there were some limitations in the twelve studies they looked at, the authors concluded "Further investigations are warranted into the long term effects of cosmetic breast implants on the detection and prognosis of breast cancer, adjusting for potential confounders."
Symptoms of Breast Cancer
According to Medical News Today, women who detect any of the following signs or symptoms should tell their doctor:
- A lump in a breast
- Pain in the armpits
- Redness of the skin of the breast, like the skin of an orange
- A rash around (or on) one of the nipples
- A swelling (lump) in one of the armpits
- An area of thickened tissue in a breast
- Discharge from a nipple, sometimes it may contain blood
- The nipple changes in appearance, becomes sunken or inverted
- The size or the shape of the breast changes
- The nipple-skin or breast-skin may have started to peel, scale or flake.
The Canadian Cancer Society reports that late signs and symptoms occur as the cancer grows larger or spreads to other parts of the body, including other organs. These include bone pain, nausea, loss of appetite, weight loss, jaundice, buildup of fluid around the lungs (pleural effusion), shortness of breath, cough, headache, double vision and muscle weakness.
The absolute risk of developing breast cancer during a particular decade of life is lower than 1 in 8. The younger you are, the lower the risk. Breastcancer.org pinpoints these age ranges:
- If your current age is 20, the probability of developing breast cancer in the next 10 years is .06%, or 1 in 1,732. This means that 1 in 1,732 women in this age group can expect to develop breast cancer.
- If your current age is 30, the probability of developing invasive breast cancer in the next 10 years is .44%, or 1 in 228.
- If your current age is 40, the probability of developing invasive breast cancer in the next 10 years is 1.45%, or 1 in 69.
- If your current age is 50, the probability of developing invasive breast cancer in the next 10 years is 2.31%, or 1 in 43.
- If your current age is 60, the probability of developing invasive breast cancer in the next 10 years is 3.49%, or 1 in 29.
- If your current age is 70, the probability of developing invasive breast cancer in the next 10 years is 3.84%, or 1 in 26.
As you can see, the older you are, the higher your absolute risk of breast cancer. Keep in mind that these numbers and percentages are averages for the whole population. Your individual breast cancer risk may be higher or lower, depending on a number of factors, including family history, reproductive history (such as menstrual and childbearing history), race/ethnicity, and other factors.
Prevention of Breast Cancer
There is no sure way to prevent breast cancer. But there are things all women can do that might reduce their risk, such as changing those risk factors that are under your control. Body weight, physical activity, and diet have all been linked to breast cancer, so these might be areas where you can do something. If you have a strong family history of breast cancer, you can talk to your doctor about genetic testing for mutations in genes that increase the risk of breast cancer. If you have such a mutation or come from a family with a mutation but haven’t been tested, you could consider surgery to lower your risk of cancer.
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