{"id":6402,"date":"2020-09-30T10:00:26","date_gmt":"2020-09-30T17:00:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.envrad.com\/?p=6402"},"modified":"2023-01-23T07:15:05","modified_gmt":"2023-01-23T14:15:05","slug":"what-are-the-risk-factors-for-breast-cancer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.envrad.com\/what-are-the-risk-factors-for-breast-cancer\/","title":{"rendered":"What Are the Risk Factors for Breast Cancer?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"What<\/p>\n

Odds are, you know someone who has experienced or is experiencing the fight against breast cancer. Breast cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer in American women, with\u00a0new cases affecting nearly 300,000 women<\/a>\u00a0this year alone.<\/p>\n

Every woman has some risk of breast cancer, but certain risk factors can increase the chance of its development. The most important thing you can do is to establish a line of communication with your doctor. Talk about the possible risk factors, including the ones you can and cannot change, and schedule routine mammogram screenings to best manage breast cancer development.<\/p>\n

Breast Cancer Risk Factors You Can Change<\/h2>\n

\"Breast<\/p>\n

Risk factors don’t indicate the presence of breast cancer. Rather, they are signs you may be more prone to developing breast cancer in the future. Some lifestyles can increase your breast cancer risk, including changeable causes of breast cancer such as:<\/p>\n

1. Being Overweight<\/h3>\n

Women with a body mass index (BMI)\u00a0of over 25<\/a>\u00a0have a higher risk of developing breast cancer, particularly in overweight women post-menopause. Having more fat tissues \u2014 your body’s primary source of estrogen after menopause \u2014 means having a higher amount of estrogen, which can increase breast cancer risk.<\/p>\n

2. Lack of Exercise<\/h3>\n

Growing evidence supports the claim that regular exercise can reduce the risk of breast cancer. The American Cancer Society suggests that adults\u00a0practice 150 to 300 minutes<\/a>\u00a0of moderate-intensity exercise \u2014 or 75 to 150 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity \u2014 every week. Exercise limits the levels of insulin growth factor, a tissue-development hormone that can affect the way breast cells grow.<\/p>\n

3. Alcohol Consumption<\/h3>\n

Breast cancer risk increases with the amount of alcohol you drink. Alcohol increases your estrogen levels and limits your liver’s ability to control the heightened estrogen in your blood. Additionally, alcohol damages the DNA in your cells, making you more vulnerable to breast cancer.<\/p>\n

4. Smoking<\/h3>\n

Smoking has links to multiple diseases, including breast cancer. Premenopausal women who smoke, or those exposed to heavy secondhand smoke, have a higher breast cancer risk than women who don’t.<\/p>\n

Schedule a Mammogram With Envision Imaging<\/a><\/p>\n

Breast Cancer Risk Factors You Can’t Change<\/h2>\n

The most predominant risk factors for breast cancer are those you cannot change, like your:<\/p>\n

1. Gender<\/h3>\n

Breast cancer is commonly thought to be a disease that affects only women, but it can also occur in men. Being a woman is the most significant risk factor of breast cancer, as\u00a0men make up less than 1%<\/a>\u00a0of new cases.<\/p>\n

Women’s breast cells are in a constant state of changing and growing. Fully formed breast cells are very responsive to the hormones estrogen and progesterone, which some breast cancers are sensitive to. Comparatively, most men’s breasts consist of fat rather than fully formed glands, greatly decreasing their breast cancer risk.<\/p>\n

2. Age<\/h3>\n

The risk of breast cancer increases as you get older. The same goes for other diseases because our body’s ability to repair genetic damage decreases as we age. For example,\u00a01 in 209 women<\/a>\u00a0in their 30s were diagnosed with invasive breast cancer in 2019, compared to the 1 in 28 women diagnosed in their 60s within the same year.<\/p>\n

3. Race<\/h3>\n

White women are at\u00a0a slightly higher risk<\/a>\u00a0of developing breast cancer than Black, Asian, Hispanic and Native American women. Studies indicate these differences may be due to lack of access to health care and other preventative measures, as well as respective lifestyle patterns, such as eating and bodyweight disparities.<\/p>\n

4. Family History of Breast Cancer<\/h3>\n

Two types of DNA changes can cause mutations that increase your risk of breast cancer \u2014 those you inherit from your relatives, or those that occur over time. It’s thought that\u00a05% to 10% of breast cancers<\/a>\u00a0result from abnormal genes passed down from family members.<\/p>\n

If you have a first-degree relative \u2014 such as your mom, sister or daughter \u2014 who gets diagnosed with breast cancer, your\u00a0risk of developing it doubles<\/a>. Or, if you have multiple relatives with either breast or ovarian cancer, you could be at a higher risk, too.<\/p>\n

5. Breast Density<\/h3>\n

Dense breasts, consisting of less fatty tissue and more non-fatty tissue, can be inherited from your family. Studies show that having dense breasts can increase your risk of breast cancer by\u00a0almost twice the amount<\/a>\u00a0of non-dense breasts, and this can also make cancerous structures harder to detect in mammograms.<\/p>\n

6. Personal History<\/h3>\n

If your doctor already diagnosed you with breast cancer, then your risk for developing another new form in either the same or the other breast\u00a0increases by 3 to 4 times<\/a>. Other\u00a0benign conditions can affect your breast cancer risk<\/a>, too, such as:<\/p>\n