According to Dr. Mercola’s article on breast cancer, the National Breast Cancer Foundation says, 200,000 new cases of breast cancer will be diagnosed each year in the US, making it three times more common than other gynecological cancers.
Breast cancer will claim the lives of 40,000 people just 2016 alone.
What is really disturbing is the speed at which breast cancer rates have risen over the past 5 decades. In 1960, one in twenty women were diagnosed—but today, it is one in seven.
The following are some important facts about this type of cancer:
One woman in eight who lives to age 85 will develop breast cancer.
Breast cancer is the leading cause of death for women age 40 to 55.
Fifteen percent of all breast cancers occur in women under age 45; in this age group, breast cancers are more aggressive and have lower recovery rates.
Eighty percent of breast lumps are NON-cancerous.
Seventy percent of breast cancers are found through breast self-exams.
About 80 percent of women diagnosed with breast cancer have no family history of breast cancer.
Unfortunately, the current medical paradigm is relatively clueless about what causes breast cancer and how to effectively treat it. Most conventional cancer treatments actually add insult to injury by doing more harm than good—a fact that up to this point has been swept under the rug by the medical industry.
Fortunately, we’re beginning to see the initial stirrings of change, as you will see from the latest research I’ll be presenting later he says.
In the largest review of research into lifestyle and breast cancer, the American Institute of Cancer Research estimated that about 40 percent of U. S. breast cancer cases could be prevented if people make wiser lifestyle choices. I believe these estimates are seriously LOW, and it is more likely that 75 to 90 percent of breast cancers could be avoided by strictly applying the recommendations I will review below.
In fact, the latest paleoanthropological research shows that cancer was virtually nonexistent in humans before poor diet and pollution appeared, finally proving that cancer is a man-made disease.
My aim for this article is to provide you with a broad understanding of the factors that lead to the development of this deadly disease—as we now understand them—and what you can do preventatively to avoid becoming the next victim.. If you happen to be a man, please read on since it actually does apply to you as well.
Men are NOT Immune to Breast Cancer
Breast cancer is not a disease exclusive to women. For every 100 women with breast cancer, one man will develop the disease. The National Breast Cancer Foundation estimates approximately 1,700 men will develop breast cancer and 450 will die from it each year.
The average age men are diagnosed with breast cancer is 67, versus 62 for women, meaning male cancers are often caught in a more advanced stage. If you work around petrochemicals, your risk is much higher. Men who work around gasoline and combustion products have a significantly higher risk of developing breast cancer.
Males and their doctors may be diverted from an accurate diagnosis due to enlargement of the breasts or gynecomastia, a common and benign condition, plus the fact that men are generally less vigilant about checking for breast lumps.
Types of Breast Cancer
Breast cancer is classified into two types, based on whether or not it is invasive:
Noninvasive (in situ) breast cancer: Cancer cells have not spread to adjacent areas of your breast—they have remained in their place of origin. The most common type is ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), which occurs in the lining of the milk ducts. Noninvasive breast cancer is sometimes called “stage 0” cancer.
Invasive breast cancer. Cancer cells infiltrate or spread outside the membrane that lines a duct or lobule, into surrounding tissues. The cancer cells can then travel to other parts of your body. Invasive breast cancer can be stage I, II, III, or IV, depending on how advanced it is.
Breast cancer can be further classified according to what type of tissue it arises from:
Milk ducts: Ductal carcinoma is the most common type of breast cancer.
Milk-producing lobules: Lobular carcinoma originates in the lobules, where breast milk is produced.
Connective tissues (muscles, fat and blood vessels): Rarely, breast cancer can originate from these breast tissues; in this case, it’s called sarcoma
Inflammatory Breast Cancer: The Rarest and Most Aggressive Form
Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) is a rare form of breast cancer of sudden onset (weeks to months) and can easily be confused with a breast infection (mastitis). The affected breast is red, swollen, warm and tender because cancer cells have blocked the lymphatic vessels in your breast.
You might or might not have a lump.
IBC accounts for between 1 and 5 percent of all breast cancer cases in the U. S., and is more common among younger women and African American women. There have been some cases documented in men. IBC is the most aggressive form of breast cancer, and survival rates are worse than for other types of breast cancer.
You should seek medical attention immediately if you have the above symptoms—or if you are being treated for mastitis but your symptoms are not resolving as expected.
Signs and Symptoms to Watch For
The most common signs and symptoms of breast cancer include the following:
A breast lump or thickening that feels different from the surrounding tissue
Bloody discharge, or other unusual discharge, from your nipple
A change in your breast’s size or shape
Changes in the skin on your breast, such as dimpling or indentation
Redness or pitting of your breast skin—kind of like the skin of an orange
Pain or tenderness in your breast
An inverted nipple
Peeling or flaking of the nipple
Enlarged lymph nodes or swelling in your armpit
If you have any of these changes, you should consult your healthcare provider immediately. But don’t panic—remember, the majority of breast tumors are benign. Many of the above signs can indicate other issues besides cancer, and your healthcare provider can help you sort it out.
What Causes Breast Cancer?
We now know that breast inflammation is KEY to the development and progression of breast cancer. Inflammation is not the cause, but rather is a key process that sets the stage for breast cancer to occur. There are certainly many aggravating factors, from foods to chemicals in the environment to lifestyle patterns and genetics—but it is the INFLAMMATION that these things cause that starts the wheel turning.
Scientists have shown that an inflammatory process within the breast itself promotes growth of breast cancer stem cells. That’s the bad news.
The good news?
Researchers were able to inactivate this inflammation selectively, which reduced the activity of these stem cells and stopped breast cancer from forming. Although your genes are a factor in your breast cancer risk, it is not your genes that dictate your health but rather the expression of them, and that depends on what genes you “turn on and off” with your lifestyle and emotional state (epigenetic factors).
In other words, you have more power over your health than your genetics does!
Breast Cancer is Closely Tied to Estrogen Exposure
There are a number of studies that have given us clues about the factors contributing to breast cancer. But one of the most significant factors is synthetic hormone replacement therapy (HRT). According to a study published online in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, breast cancer rates for women dropped in tandem with decreased use of HRT. In Canada, between 2002 and 2004, HRT use dropped by 7.8 percent. During that same time, breast cancer rates also fell by 9.6 percent.
This further supports existing evidence that HRT is linked with breast cancer, which is an estrogen-related cancer. So it is no surprise that giving women potent synthetic estrogens will increase their risk.
However, there’s a twist.
After remaining stable at around five percent between 2004 and 2006, breast cancer rates then began to rise again, even though HRT use remained low. The researchers claim this is an indication that HRT simply speeds up tumor growth, as opposed to directly causing it.
It’s also important to remember that you are exposed to a large number of estrogen-like compounds daily, called xenoestrogens. Estrogen pollution is increasingly present all around you, from plastics to canned food and drinks, food additives, household cleaning products, and pesticides. And estrogen levels are rising in our waterways as a result of the runoff from factory animal farms.
Still, whether it’s a promoter or a causative factor, there’s good reason to be wary of using HRT to address natural menopause. There is no reason to subject yourself to synthetic hormones when you reach menopause—the risk is simply too great.
If you are experiencing excessive menopausal symptoms, you may want to consider bioidentical hormone replacement therapy, which uses hormones that are molecularly identical to the ones your body produces and does not wreak havoc on your system, which is a much safer alternative.
There are similar risks for younger women who use oral contraceptives—birth control pills, which are also comprised of synthetic hormones—have been linked to cervical and breast cancers. Another aggravating factor in breast cancer is, unfortunately, the breast cancer screening tool itself.
Raphael Nyarkotey Obu: PhD(A. M) is a Research Professor of Prostate Cancer and Holistic Medicine at Da Vinci College of Holistic Medicine, Cyprus
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