Health

BREAST CANCER FACTS

1. All women are at risk. Breast Cancer is the leading cause of death among women in the entire world. Breast cancer is second to Lung cancer as cause of cancer in both sexes. Approximately 80% of breast cancers occur in women without risk factors.

2. Only about 5 % of breast cancers are inherited. About 80% of women diagnosed with breast cancers will be first victims of their families.

3. Breast cancer is the leading killer of women ages 35-54 worldwide. More than a million women develop breast cancer without knowing it and almost 500,000 will die from it every year.

4. One out of four who are diagnosed with breast cancer will die within the first five years. No less than 40 % will die in 10 years.

5. The incidence of breast cancer has been rising for the past 30 years.

6. Risk factors are not necessarily causes of breast cancer. Enough evidence linking environmental pollution and contamination to cause breast cancer.

7. Mammography fails to detect as much as 20 % of all breast cancers and as much as 40 % in women under 50.

8. Early detection does not prevent breast cancer. Avoiding and eliminating the known causes will prevent breast cancer.

9. One out of eight American women will develop breast cancer. The San Francisco Bay Area has the highest.

10. The Philippines has the highest incidence in Asia and is today one of the ten highest incidence rate in the world. 25 out of 100 women maybe diagnosed with breast cancer. One out of 105 men maybe diagnosed with breast cancer.

RISK FACTORS:

1. Genetic factor

2. Environmental factors:

· exposure to ionizing radiation: only proven environmental cause.

· constant diet high in fat, salt & sugar; being overweight; women’s age ( above 30) during 1st pregnancy, those who never had children & did not breast fed

· Studies have found that 200 synthetic chemicals are found in breast milk. It is a well documented fact that many chemicals accumulate in the body fat and remain in the breast tissues for decades. Studies have shown that all women carry persistent pollutants in their blood, breast and other fatty tissues.

· Our mothers, sisters, wives, daughters and friends are suffering from breast cancer at ever- rising rates and the evidence shows that out exposure to toxic chemicals is largely contributing to the epidemic rates of the disease.

· These chemicals are found in the food that we eat, the water we drink & air we breath.

· Rather than we wait for absolute proof that maybe decades in coming , it is time to act on this evidence to reduce and eliminate cancer- causing chemicals in our bodies and in our environment.

SIGNS & SYMPTOMS:

1. Lump, thickening or swelling of the breast

2. Unusual change in size and shape of the breast

3. One breast unusually lower than the other

4. Puckering or dimpling of the skin of the breast

5. Retraction of the nipple

6. A sore on the nipple

EARLY DETECTION:

1. Self-breast examination; done once a month one week after menstruation, but should be validated by a medical professional once a year

2. Mammography

PREVENTION:

- Generally breast cancer cannot be prevented especially if a woman has a family history of breast cancer.

- Measures to minimize the incidence: eat healthy diet rich in fiber , Vit A & C; get enough exercise; maintain ideal weight, avoidance of alcohol, stressors, toxic chemicals, environmental pollutants (smoking, radiation, nuclear waste)./TE