Traditional Risk Factors for breast cancer survivors

Traditional Risk Factors for breast cancer survivors

PREGNANCY STATUS

While early pregnancy is known to offer protection, a benefit of natural
hormonal changes, both late pregnancies (after age thirty-five) and no pregnancy at
all confer a statistically higher incidence of breast cancer.

NO BREASTFEEDING

Known to provide many health benefits for the baby, breastfeeding also appears
to offer protective benefits to the mother by helping to reduce her risk of
developing breast cancer, especially when infants breastfeed up to one to one-and-ahalf
years of age.

ORAL CONTRACEPTIVE USE

Several studies have uncovered a link between the long-term use of birth control
pills and breast disease later in life. A noteworthy NCI-sponsored study published in
2003 (Althuis et al.) reported that using oral contraceptives generated a higher risk
of breast cancer, especially in younger women. This risk was more pronounced in
women who had used oral contraceptives within the past five years, whereas the risk
diminished over a longer period (ibid.).

HORMONE REPLACEMENT THERAPY

After years of recommending postmenopausal hormone replacement therapy
(HRT) to millions of women, the medical establishment reversed course after the
publication of the Women’s Health Initiative Study in 2002 (Rossouw et al.), which
reported that five years of combined HRT (pharmaceutical estradiol and progestin)
was associated with a 26 percent increase in risk of invasive breast cancer in
postmenopausal women.

DIETHYLSTILBESTROL

Developed in the late 1930s, diethylstilbestrol (DES) is a synthetic estrogen that
was administered to pregnant women to help prevent or lower the risk of
miscarriage. Women who took DES and women whose mothers took it may have a
higher risk of developing breast cancer. The ACS (2010a) provides information
about the link between DES and breast cancer (see the references).
Confirmed Environmental Exposures
Environmental factors are increasingly recognized as an important part of the
risk of breast cancer. The biggest environmental risks, ones that you can, to some
extent, control, are smoking cigarettes and working at night.

SMOKING CIGARETTES

Although smoking is traditionally associated with lung cancer, we’ve learned
from a number of recent studies that the risk of breast cancer is also strongly
associated with smoking and secondhand-smoke exposure. The risk of breast cancer
increases by 50 percent among women who have smoked for forty years or longer,
compared to nonsmokers (Cui, Miller, and Rohan 2006).
Smoking is a clear and present risk factor for breast cancer. Although quitting
can be an arduous task, the rewards are huge, and many organizations, including the
American Cancer Society, can provide help (see appendix B).

WORKING NIGHTS

While not as controllable as smoking cigarettes, working at night is an
environmental factor. The ACS indicates that women who work night shifts, such as
nurses and flight attendants, may have a change in melatonin levels (a hormone
produced by exposure to light). This change is believed to be a factor that increases
the risk of developing breast cancer.

Keep in Mind

Despite the multitude of risk factors discussed here and elsewhere, it’s empowering
to remember that most people do not get cancer in their lifetimes and that most
women who do get breast cancer survive the experience. In the following chapters,
we’ll look at all of the ways available to you to lower your risk and claim your
rightful power to more confidently sail your ship.

Last Word

For years, cancer was just a word to me. Now it’s a journey, filled with
challenge, yes, but also the joy of learning.
—H. Levy, breast cancer survivor