Across the country and across all demographic groups, breast cancer deaths have dropped, thanks to earlier detection. But according to the American Cancer Society statistics, almost 60,000 women died of breast cancer last year.
That’s why October, which is breast cancer awareness month, is a good time to remind all women about maintaining breast health and making sure they are seeing their doctor for routine screening.
“Mammograms can detect early signs and changes sometimes 30 years before a lump could be felt,” said Dr. Abigail Miller, chief medical officer at Minnesota-based United Health Care.
Most women are encouraged to begin mammograms at age 50, but women with certain symptoms or a family history of breast cancer often begin screening mammograms or other imaging tests at age 40.
Dr. Miller said that cost should not prevent a woman from seeking mammograms.
“It’s important to know that under the Affordable Care Act, (also known as Obamacare) most health plans must cover mammograms," she says. "It’s part of the preventative benefits that are typically free.”
Dr. Miller said that women who feel a lump in the breast or the armpit during a self-exam should contact their doctor right away. Other symptoms that should prompt a woman to reach out to her provider include changes in skin over the breast—redness, flakiness, thickening skin— and changes in the nipple.
Women of color remain at higher risk for fatal outcomes following a breast cancer diagnosis.
“In this country, Black women with breast cancer have a 40% higher death rate than white women,” said Dr. Miller. “These are alarming statistics. Breast cancer is more treatable and curable but not everyone is benefiting.”
Among American women, lung and bronchus cancers at the most deadly, followed by breast cancer, colon and rectal cancer, pancreatic cancer and ovarian cancer.
Here, again, there are disparities.
“Among Hispanic women, breast cancer is the number one cancer death,” Dr. Miller said. “For all of our awareness, breast cancer is very much a risk to women’s health. We should raise awareness that we haven’t reached equitable outcomes especially among women of color.”
Treatment for breast cancer can include surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. New advances include immunotherapy, which uses the body’s own immune system to attack cancer cells, and hormone therapy that helps slow cancer growth.
Dr. Miller said that regular exercise, a diet with lots of fruits and vegetables, maintaining a healthy weight and not smoking can all be protective factors that might lower a women’s risk and prevent her from getting a breast cancer diagnosis.
“You don’t have to look far to find someone you know and cherish who has had their life impacted by breast cancer,” she said. “October is a good time to be reminded to get that mammogram.”
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