In India, 1 woman is diagnosed with breast cancer every 4 minutes since breast cancer is the most common cancer in the country and accounts for 25%-32% of all female cancers. More than 60% of the women who are diagnosed with breast cancer survive for at least 5 years after cancer treatment, according to cancer specialists in Delhi NCR and India. This is low when compared to the 89% survival rate in the US, but India is improving every day, all thanks to improving breast cancer treatment offered by Industry experts like Dr. Manish Singhal.
Looking at the high numbers, you must be wondering if everyone gets or is prone to breast cancer. No, despite the high numbers, everyone is not prone to breast cancer. In fact, there are several risk factors associated with breast cancer that not only dictates who will get the disease and who will not, but also decides the breast cancer treatment that is effective for one.
Talking about the risk factors of breast cancer
Let's get one thing out of the way first, women without the risk factors can also get breast cancer as people with the risk factors, and even if a woman has ALL the risk factors, she might not get breast cancer. In fact, all the risk factors don’t affect everyone equally. However, if you DO have the breast cancer risk factors, you can always talk to your doctor about lowering the risk and regular screening, the best cancer doctors think it can help.
Now, let's talk about the risk factors.
According cancer specialists in Delhi and worldwide, there are two types of risk factors for breast cancer, modifiable risk factors, and non-modifiable risk factors. Modifiable risk factors, as the name suggests, are risk factors that you can change, and non-modifiable risk factors are risk factors you cannot change.
Modifiable Risk Factors:
· Obesity
Being overweight or post-menopausal obesity can cause estrogen misbalance within the body. More estrogen production from fat tissues can be the cause of breast cancer, according to the best cancer doctors.
· Pregnancy
Women who have never given birth or who have given birth after the ages of 35 are more prone to getting breast cancer than women who have given birth.
· Lactation
According to oncologists in Delhi, NCR and worldwide shorter lactation period or lack of lactation increase the risk of breast cancer.
· Alcohol Intake
Drinking excessive alcohol not increase increases the risk of breast cancer but also hampers breast cancer treatment for people who suffer from the disease.
· Hormone Intake
Women seeking relief from post-menopausal symptoms often get treated with a concoction of estrogen and progesterone. This increases their risk of getting breast cancer. However, on stopping the hormone intake, the risk of disease also decreases, according to top oncologists in Delhi NCR and worldwide.
· Physical Inactivity
Women who are not physically active are at a higher risk of getting breast cancer.
· Radiation Exposure
Moderate to high exposure to ionizing radiation and radiation treatment to the chest as a child or young adult increases the risk of breast cancer.
While some of these are behavioral risk factors, some are risk factor that can be avoided, that is why they fall under modifiable risk factors.
Non-modifiable risk factors:
· Gender
Women are more likely to get breast cancer than men. Some of the best cancer doctors and researchers think that is because women have more exposure to hormones promoting breast cell growth, like estrogen and progesterone. However, about 1% of the male population also get breast cancer.
· Age
As you age, your chances of getting breast cancer increases. In fact, the average age at presentation was found to be around 45-50 years.
· Family History
Your risk of breast cancer may increase if your mother, sister, daughter or sometimes if your father, brother, or son had/has breast cancer.
· Genetic Factors
Some inherited rare mutations can increase your chances of getting breast cancer. Some common mutations are seen in BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes.
· Menstrual History
Early menstruation or late menopause can both increase risk of breast cancer.
· Past history of breast cancer
People who’ve had breast cancer once are at a higher risk of getting it again.
How can you prevent breast cancer?
While you cannot prevent breast cancer, you can take precautions against it. This is how:
- Exercise regularly
- Eat Healthy
- Limit alcohol intake
- Do not smoke
- Limit dosage of hormone therapy
- Avoid or limit exposure to radiation and environmental pollution
Genetic factors, family history, past history of breast cancer, and exposure to radiation are more prone to increase the risk of breast cancer than the others, although there is no guarantee that people with these risk factors will get breast cancer.
On an ending note
Precautions against the modifiable risk factors and keeping a check on yourself and on non-modifiable risk factors can help immensely in preventing or at least keeping an eye on breast cancer. If you need more insights about the breast cancer scenario, you can always consult an expert like Dr. Manish Singhal, the best breast cancer doctor in Delhi NCR, offering the best breast cancer treatment in Delhi.