Reduce your risk of developing breast cancer

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every woman is at risk of developing
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breast cancer and this risk increases as
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we get older especially over 50 109 of
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us will develop breast cancer in our
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lifetime
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and while uncommon men can get breast
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cancer too when I was 27 I found what I
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thought was a lump in my breast I was 56
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years old
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48 43 years old the exact causes of
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breast cancer well they're unknown but
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what we do know is that there are
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certain risk factors that can increase
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your chances of developing the disease
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you can influence some risk factors
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while others you can't like getting
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older being a woman and having a family
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history of breast cancer understanding
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these factors may help reduce your risk
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the New Zealand Breast Cancer Foundation
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wants you to know that most women who
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get breast cancer don't have a family
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history with the disease there's
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absolutely no history of breast cancer
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in my family on either side I'm I'm the
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first that became sir a big shock it was
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also a massive shock that I was just 31
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years old when I was first diagnosed
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even then I've thought god this is a nom
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de l'homme entities the majority of
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breast cancer cases are in women over 50
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however if your mother sister or
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daughter has had breast or ovarian
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cancer and particularly if they were
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under 50 you may have a higher chance of
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getting breast cancer and this one that
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applies to the blokes - it's important
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to know about the incidence of breast
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cancer on both sides of your family and
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discuss this with your doctor your
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breast health may need closer monitoring
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my mum was diagnosed when she was 48 and
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then my auntie was diagnosed under 50 as
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well so I think it's about as a family
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being aware of it and on to it and
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knowing that it's something that we do
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have to be careful of and look out for
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all breasts are different some women
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have a higher percentage of dense breast
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tissue which may increase their breast
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cancer risk when I first developed very
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dense breast tissue I understood that
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the problem with that was that it would
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obscure any potential tumor
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I now know from the research that I've
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read more recently that in fact that
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level of breast density was actually a
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risk factor in itself breast density
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isn't something you can feel it can only
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be seen on an x-ray you may wish to ask
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about your breast density after your
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next mammogram the good news you can
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reduce your risk through lifestyle
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choices
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many studies show that women who are
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overweight especially after menopause
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have a higher chance of getting breast
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cancer
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maintaining a healthy weight along with
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regular exercise will help to reduce
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your risk research has shown that
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alcohol is linked to breast cancer so
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try and cut back to no more than one
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standard drink a day
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exposure to hormones can also affect
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your breast cancer risk many of us who
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are menopausal of age have terrible
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problems with hormones and if the
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quality of your life is bad enough that
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you need to take hormone replacement
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therapy then obviously you need it we do
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know that after three years of hormone
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replacement therapy your risk of breast
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cancer goes up so definitely after three
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years I advise my patients to start
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thinking about whether they still need
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it and certainly after five years the
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risk is really too great and then once
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we've done one side we merely go on to
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the other the oral contraceptive pill at
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a young age is quite safe in fact it's
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protective for ovarian cancer so it's a
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very safe thing to be on but we do know
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that over the age of 40 on the oral
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contraceptive pill increases your risk
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of breast cancer as well so know your
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risks and try to make lifestyle changes
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where you can maintain a healthy weight
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built on regular exercise into your week
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go easy on the alcohol and talk to your
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doctor about the potential risks of the
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pill or HRT after 40 make sure you share
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any family history of breast cancer with
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your doctor and to further reduce your
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risk start regular mammograms at 40
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for more advice call the New Zealand
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Breast Cancer Foundation on a 800 BC
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nurse or talk to your doctor