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Facts About Breast Cancer in the United States:
Year 2007
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Get involved by joining the National Breast Cancer
Coalition.
Call 1-800-622-2838 or click here.
Year 2007
- The National Cancer Institute estimates that a woman in the United
States has a 1 in 8 chance of developing invasive breast cancer
during her lifetime. This risk was about 1 in 11 in 1975.
- More women in the United States are living with breast cancer than
any other cancer (excluding skin cancer). Approximately 3 million
women in the U.S. are living with breast cancer: about 2.3 million
have been diagnosed with the disease and an estimated 1 million do
not yet know they have the disease.
- Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among
women in the United States and worldwide (excluding skin cancer). In
2007, it is estimated that 240,510 new cases of breast cancer will be
diagnosed among women in the United States: 178,480 invasive
breast cancers and 62,030 cases of in situ breast cancer (of which,
85% will be ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS)).1
- Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death for
women in the U.S, after lung cancer. Approximately 40,460 women in
the U.S. will die from the disease in 2007. Breast cancer is the
leading cause of cancer death for U.S. women between the ages of
20 and 59, and the leading cause of cancer death for women
worldwide.
- Approximately 11% of women diagnosed with invasive breast cancer
die from the disease within five years; at ten years, 20% will have
died. The most recent available statistics show that 40% of all women
diagnosed with invasive breast cancer died from the disease within
20 years.2
- Older women are much more likely to get breast cancer than younger
women. Most breast cancers (about 80%) occur in women ages 50
and older. About 5% of all breast cancer cases occur in women
under the age of 40. However, younger women who get breast
cancer have a lower survival rate than older women who get breast
cancer.
- Combining all age groups, white (non-Hispanic) women are more
likely to develop breast cancer than black women. However, black
women are more likely to die of breast cancer than white women.
- Black women have a higher breast cancer mortality rate at every
age, and a lower survival rate than white women.3 The five-year
survival rate for white women diagnosed with invasive breast cancer
is 90% while the five-year survival rate for black women diagnosed
with invasive breast cancer is only 77%.
- Between 1994 and 2003, the mortality rate for women of all races
combined declined by 2.4% annually. In white women, breast cancer
mortality declined by 2.5% annually. In black women, mortality
declined by 1.4% annually during the same period.4
- Mortality has declined faster for women under the age of 50 (by 3.3%
annually), regardless of race/ethnicity.
- The current methods of treatment in use in the United States are
surgery (mastectomy and lumpectomy), radiation, chemotherapy,
hormonal therapy, and biologic therapy (e.g. monoclonal antibody
therapy).
- Mammography screening does not prevent or cure breast cancer.
However, it may detect the disease before symptoms occur. Breast
cancer tumors can exist for six to ten years before they grow large
enough to be detected by mammography.
- Mammography is less effective in younger women. In the overall
population, digital mammography does not perform better than
traditional film mammography. However, among younger women,
digital mammography has been reported to detect more breast
cancers than film mammography. There are no studies to establish
whether screening with digital mammography decreases breast
cancer mortality.
- All women are at risk for breast cancer. About 90-95% of women who
develop breast cancer do not have a family history of the disease.
- Factors that increase a woman's risk of breast cancer include older
age, genetic factors, family history of breast or ovarian cancer, long
menstrual history, nulliparity (having no children), older than 30
years of age at first full-term pregnancy, daily alcohol consumption,
use of combined postmenopausal hormone therapy (PHT),
postmenopausal obesity, and ionizing radiation. Factors that
decrease a woman's risk of breast cancer include breast-feeding and
physical activity (exercise).
- Recently, higher breast density has been show to be strongly
associated with the risk of breast cancer. It was found that breast
cancer rate was almost four times greater in those with extremely
dense breast tissue as opposed to those with fatty breast tissue. It is
important to remember that since mammography is less sensitive in
detecting breast cancer for dense breasts, the effect of breast
density may be somewhat underestimated.
- Although scientists have discovered some risk factors for breast
cancer, the known risk factors account for only a small percentage
(~30%) of breast cancer cases. There are few interventions with
limited value that reduce risk, and none of them prevent breast
cancer.
Help change these statistics!
Get involved by joining the National Breast Cancer
Coalition.
Call 1-800-622-2838 or click here.
| The Four Steps to Good Breast Health 1. Breast self-exam Know how your breasts normally look and feel. Examining your breasts via regular breast self exam is one way for you to get to know how your breasts normally feel and to notice any changes. Report any changes to your doctor. 2. Regular checkup See your doctor for a clinical breast exam at least every 3 years starting at age 20, and annually after age 40. This exam can reveal abnormalities missed by a mammogram. 3. Mammography exam The American Cancer Society recommends having yearly mammograms beginning at age 40. If you are younger than 40 and have a family history of breast cancer or other concerns, discuss when to begin screening with your doctor. 4. Risk evaluation Your doctor has tools to help identify women at high risk of breast cancer. Identify your risk factors for breast cancer and discuss them with your doctor:
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