Genetic links to Breast Cancer:Definition:
Breast cancer is a malignant growth that begins in the tissues of the breast. Over the course of a lifetime, one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer. It is also found in men, however it is not as common for develop breast cancer.
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Genetic links to Breast Cancer:
To date, most inherited cases of breast cancer have been associated with two genes: BRCA1, which stands for BReast CAncer gene one, and BRCA2, or BReast CAncer gene two.
The function of these genes is to keep breast cells growing normally and to prevent any cancer cell growth. But when these genes contain abnormalities, or mutations, they are associated with an increased breast cancer risk. Abnormal BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes may account for up to 10% of all breast cancers.
Women diagnosed with breast cancer who have an abnormal BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene often have a family history of breast cancer, ovarian cancer, or both. But it's also important to remember that most women with breast cancer have no family history of the disease.
Identifying BRCA1 and BRCA2 has led to new techniques for lowering detecting and treating breast cancer and lowering the risk for the disease. For women who wish to be tested, we can now establish whether the two genes are normal or not.
But there's still a lot more to learn
about these genes. And other genes probably also play a role in the development
of breast cancer, for women both with and without a family history of the disease.
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Breast
Cancer Risk Factors:
~ getting older — the older you get, the greater
your risk of breast cancer
~ a personal history of breast or ovarian cancer
~ having a mother, daughter or sister who has
had breast cancer
~ having a previous biopsy showing hyperplasia
or carcinoma in situ
~ being young (<12 years) at the time of
your first period
~ starting menopause after age 55
~ having an inherited mutation in the BRCA1 or
BRCA2 breast cancer genes
~ having more than one drink of alcohol per day
~ being overweight after menopause or gaining
weight as an adult
~ taking birth control pills for 5 years or longer
(which can slightly increase your risk for
breast cancer)
~ never having children
~ having your first child after age 30
~ currently or recently using combined estrogen and
progesterone hormone replacement therapy (HRT)
~ being exposed to large amounts of radiation,
such as having very frequent spine X-rays
during scoliosis treatment or treatment for
Hodgkin’s disease at a young age
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Age:
A woman’s chance of getting breast cancer increases with age.
Your chance by your current age is:
age 20 1 in 2152
age 30 1 in 251
age 40 1 in 69
age 50 1 in 36
age 60 1 in 26
age 70 1 in 23
ever 1 in 7
Source: American Cancer Society
Surveillance Research, 2003.
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Prevention Methods:
Some risk factors for breast cancer are beyond your control. But a number of significant risk factors CAN be "undone" to reduce your risk of breast cancer:
~ STOP SMOKING!
~ Excercise 3-4 hours a week.
~ Anything related to stress relief, to enhance your comfort, satisfaction,
and joy will have a major effect on your quality of life.
~ Restrict red meat and other sources
of animal fat (this includes dairy fat in cheese, milk, and ice cream), as they
may contain stored hormones or pesticides.
~ Try to stick to a relatively vegetarian diet.
~ Shed any extra pounds, and try hard to keep those pounds off.
~ If you have already had breast cancer, avoid taking estrogen-like products
such as menopausal hormone therapy and DHEA.
~ If circumstances allow, consider having children sooner rather than later
in life.
~ Stop drinking alcohol or limit consumption to no more than two alcoholic drinks
per week (cutting down on alcohol increases your liver's ability to regulate
blood estrogen levels).
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Self-Breast Exam
Watch an interactive Self-Breast Exam
Self Breast exams should be preformed once a month. The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation website, allows you to request a card to hang in your shower. To request a card, please click here Request an exam card.
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