Breast Cancer Facts

• Every 19 seconds, somewhere in the world, someone is diagnosed with breast cancer
• Every 74 seconds, somewhere in the world, someone dies from breast cancer.
• Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women worldwide.
• Breast cancer is the most common cancer among black women.
• Breast cancer is the second leading cause of death cancer among black women.
• Socio- economic and cultural influences contribute to the nature of tumor manifestation, progression, and mortality.
• Triple Negative Breast cancer (TNBC) affected more black women than all other races combined.
• The most recent research has shown that TNBC causes may likely lay in the African ancestry.

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Breast Cancer Risk Factors 

• Age – incidence increases with advancing age
• Reproductive:  late menopause, few children, nulliparity, late age at first birth
• Lifestyle: high calorie diets, alcohol, lack of exercise
• Obesity in post-menopausal women
• High breast density on mammogram
• Long term use of hormone replacement therapy

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Breast Cancer Stage 

• Screening mammogram
• Diagnosis
• Breast self-examination
• Clinical examination by a physician
• Diagnostic mammogram
• Biopsy
• Stage at diagnosis
• Biological markers: ER, PgR, Her2/neu, other pathological features of the tumor

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Survival

1. More than 2.9 million estimated women live with invasive breast cancer as Of January 1st 2012 and additional 226,870 women will be diagnosed.
2. About 20% of breast cancer occur among women under the age of 50, and about 40% occur among women older than 65.
3. The overall 5-year relative survival rate for female breast cancer patients is 90% today compared to 63% in the early 60th.
4. The 5-year relative survival rate for localized breast cancer is 99%.

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The reasons are the improvement in treatments (Chemotherapy, hormonal therapy and widespread use of mammogram screening).