Archive for category Breast Cancer
Avoiding Breast Cancer – What Should We Do?
Posted by admin in Breast Cancer on September 23, 2010
General Information on Breast Cancer
Breast cancer has been one of the leading health concerns for women. For over 3,600 years the cancer has affected the lives of women in immeasurable ways. According to the Edwin Smith papyrus, awareness of breast cancer has been well established since 1600 BC in Egypt, thus making it the oldest form of cancer known to humans. “There is no treatment”, this is what early Egyptian physicians writes about breast cancer according to the papyrus and for centuries this has been the attitude displayed by both health practitioners and patients.
But while the Egyptians have considered the disease incurable, we now have medical advancements that make survival almost an absolute certainty at early stages. All we need is a firm knowledge on warning signs of the cancer and the determination to go through the treatment process.
What are the Causes of Breast Cancer?
About one in eight women will be diagnosed with this cancer in a lifetime. There are several risk factors which are part of our lives that we could not change. This includes aging, familial history, genetics and menstrual cycle.
The risk of getting cancer becomes higher as a person ages. Advanced cancer stages are commonly found in women fifty years old and above. About thirty percent of women who have breast cancer have a family history of breast, ovarian, uterine or ovarian cancer. Read the rest of this entry »
Is Breast Cancer Genetic?
Posted by admin in Breast Cancer on August 10, 2010
While a tremendous amount of research has been done on the causes of breast cancer, an exact breakdown by percentages or some such measure is still not completely accurate. Hormone levels and those levels related to age are factors. Diet and heredity are also among the most important indicators of breast cancer probability.
The hormones in question are estrogen and progesterone. Any levels significantly different from the average of the females at the age the woman is, represents an increase in probability of getting breast cancer. This includes age factors for the beginning age of menstruation as well as the ending age. If a girl begins menstruation at an early age, or a woman past middle age has not reached menopause, cancer risk increases.
Because of this connection, hormone therapy after menopause is not always a recommended practice – especially if there are is a family history with links to breast cancer. Read the rest of this entry »