The dangers of breast cancer

Studies have shown that your risk for breast cancer is due to a combination of factors. The main factors that influence your risk include being a woman and getting older. Most breast cancers are found in women who are 50 years old or older. Some women will get breast cancer even without any other risk factors that they know of. Having a risk factor does not mean you will get the disease, and not all risk factors have the same effect.

Each breast contains 15 to 20 lobes of glandular tissue, arranged like the petals of a daisy. The lobes are further divided into smaller lobules that produce milk for breast-feeding. Small tubes ducts conduct the milk to a reservoir that lies just beneath your nipple. After skin cancer, breast cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed in women in the United States. Breast cancer can occur in both men and women, but it's far more common in women. Substantial support for breast cancer awareness and research funding has helped created advances in the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. Breast cancer survival rates have increased, and the number of deaths associated with this disease is steadily declining, largely due to factors such as earlier detection, a new personalized approach to treatment and a better understanding of the disease.

Breast cancer is now the most common cancer in the UK. It is by far the most common cancer in women. Many people who have these factors never get it and some people with no risk factors develop it. Women who are overweight after their menopause have a higher risk of breast cancer than women who are not overweight. Men also have an increased risk of breast cancer if they are overweight or obese.

Not all women have the same risk for developing breast cancer over a lifetime. Certain factors increase a woman's risk, and some have a bigger impact on risk than others. However, having several risk factors doesn't mean you'll inevitably develop breast cancer. Likewise, having few risk factors doesn't mean that you'll never develop it.