In this issue:
Cover Story: ANNE CURTIS
15 MEN ON FIRE
15th ANNIVERSARY Special!

YOU, ONLY BETTER

Better You > You, Only Better

4 More Things You Need To Know About Breast Cancer

It's Breast Cancer Awareness Month, so do your part and find out everything you can about this disease. We help you by sharing a few more facts that could save your life.
Posted on October 17, 2011 07:00 am by Esther Crain, US Writer
Photo: Eric McNatt
Print Email


We shared with you ten facts you should know about breast cancer in our Breast Cancer Awareness feature, but we feel you need to know these additional vital info:

1. It rarely strikes in your 20s.

Less than five percent of all breast cancer cases occur in women under 40. It usually hits after menopause; nearly 80 percent of cases are in women over 50.

2. Gynes don't always take symptoms seriously.

Because breast cancer is so uncommon in young women, your doc may blow off a lump or other worrisome sign (like bloody nipple discharge). Insist that she perform a clinical breast exam and a needle biopsy or ultrasound.

3. A family history puts younger women at risk.

When 20- and 30-something women develop the disease, they may have a gene mutation. If your mother or sister had breast cancer before menopause, consider genetic testing.

4. It's no deadlier for younger women.

Studies disprove the theory that breast cancer is more lethal in your 20s and 30s. How aggressive it is depends on the size and type of tumor, and if it has spread to other body parts. A stage one cancer in a young woman is just as curable as a stage one cancer in a woman who is older.


Sources: Katherine Alley, MD, medical director of the Breast Center at Suburban Hospital in Bethesda, Maryland; American Cancer Society

Follow Cosmopolitan Philippines on Facebook and Twitter!
Rating:

5 out of 5  Number of Votes: 1 |

Print | Email

Tags: cancer,breast check,health,breast cancer,body issues,breast cancer awareness,women,female concerns,healthy body

1 Comment

Add A Comment

    Security Image

Advertisements

Follow
us on:

POPULAR IN BETTER YOU

RECEIVE COSMO.PH WEEKLY!

Join thousands of subscribers enjoying our fab weekly Wednesday sendouts, and get EXCLUSIVE celeb news, tips, and promos right in your inbox.