Breast Cancer Prevention

It's a simple fact, if women paid more attention to their own breast health, the number suffering from the dreaded disease would decrease dramatically. The grim fact is, one in nine women will have breast cancer in her lifetime--but chances of survival approach 100 percent if treatment is initiated when the cancer lesion is small and is still confined within the ducts of the breast. Many women who have had breast cancer are completely cured and are leading wonderful, fulfilling lives.

Breast cancer is a disease of contradictions. There is no known way to prevent the disease, yet more and more women are learning the basics of breast care that lead to early detection. For many there is a complete cure, yet 129 women each day are still dying of the disease.

You may believe that you are not at risk for breast cancer if there is no history of the disease in your family. However, 80 percent of breast cancer victims have no family history of breast cancer. According to the Swedish radiologist Dr. Lazlo Tabar, there are really only two risk factors: that you are a woman, and that you are getting older.

The key to keep from becoming a statistic is to find the disease at an early stage for a complete cure. This becomes our responsibility as women.

Although there is no proven way to prevent breast cancer, you can dramatically improve your odds if you follow the American Cancer Society recommendations for breast care:

* Examine your breasts every month. Look for lumps, thicknesses, dimpling of the skin, unusual discharge from the nipple, or other changes. Your physician or the nurse at the physician's office can show you how to do a breast exam, or you can get an easy-to-follow pamphlet from the American Cancer Society.

* Have a breast exam by a health professional at the same time that you have your Pap smear. Women between the ages of 20 and 39 should have a clinical breast examination every three years; the examination should be repeated annually after the age of 40.

* Have regular mammograms starting at age 40. That means you should have your first mammogram by age 40, one mammogram every year, or two every year, thereafter. Your physician may recommend that you begin having mammograms at an earlier age if you have any of the risk factors for the disease. These include, but are not limited to, a personal or family history of breast cancer, early onset of menstruation (before age 12), first child born after the age of 30, obesity, or no pregnancies.

Where should you go for your mammogram? The best way to be assured that your mammogram will be high quality is to select a center that is accredited by the American College of Radiology (ACR). To be accredited, a center must have up-to-date equipment and procedures, and its staff must have special mammography training. Call the American Cancer Society at 1-800-ACS-2345 for a list of ACR-accredited centers in your area.

Ask questions about the equipment that will be used for your own mammogram. The X-ray machine should be designed especially for mammography, and no other kinds of examinations. A conventional X-ray machine designed for many other examinations will not produce the accurate picture needed for a mammographic diagnosis because it has no means to compress the breast. This important feature is found on a machine dedicated solely to mammography. Also, a regular X-ray unit will produce more radiation than is necessary for mammography.

Today's mammography technology means that breast cancer can be detected earlier. With the latest films, screens, and filming and processing techniques, lesions as small as a pin head can be discovered. That means a longer life, and less prospect of disfiguring surgery.

Last updated Dec 12/06