Breast Cancer Awareness

Hey, Breast Cancer Awareness Month just passed. But, have you ever wondered what that really means? No, really. Yes, it’s in the name, but what EXACTLY are we raising awareness for? What has this month changed? How did this month come to be?

Breast Cancer Awareness Month is all about raising as much awareness of the disease as possible. But, it’s mainly about getting people involved in raising awareness and donating funds to help support the research and support for helping people with this disease.

Every October Breast Cancer Awareness Month starts. It started in October of 1985 as a result of a partnership between the American Cancer Society and the pharmaceutical company Imperial Chemical Industries to promote mammograms as the most effective tool to fight cancer.

Breast Cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in women and  the second leading cause of death in women. Since 1989, breast cancer mortality rates have been steadily decreasing, and an overall decline of 43% through 2020 due to  a result of earlier detection, better treatments, and increased awareness. Breast Cancer Awareness raises the funds for causes like these, allowing for developments to be made with the right expenses. The point of this article is to inform people about breast cancer and raise awareness while doing so.

Did you know that men can get breast cancer too? It’s harder to detect, but the effects are similar to breast cancer in women when the diagnosis and stage are the same. Sometimes breast cancer can spread to the bloodstream and other parts of the body. It can lead to tumors in the brain, liver, lungs, bones, etc. Effects of breast cancer may include  blocked blood vessels, bone fractures, and pressure on the spinal cord.

Breast cancer affects men at the age of about 67 years on average in the U.S. For women, the age ranges from 62 years on average and younger. For men, breast cancer risk increases as they get older. Symptoms in both men and women are grotesque, so I won’t be discussing them here! What I will discuss is the heredity of breast cancer. Having a first degree relative (parent, sibling, or child) diagnosed with breast cancer almost doubles the chances of breast cancer. Risk increases when the number of close relatives are diagnosed, or when a relative developed breast cancer under the age of 50 years.

In men, the cancer is harder to detect and it’s detected at a later stage than in women. The longer it’s there, the harder it is to treat it, and treatment is harsher. There are treatments for the cancer, and the most common treatments for it include surgery, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, or radiation. Each of these treatments aren’t risk free unfortunately. Common side effects include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, pain, arm swelling, shortness of breath, and skin irritation. These side effects can range from mild to severe. Treatment really does help, though. Treatment is used to shrink or kill cancer cells.

Despite all the negatives about breast cancer, there are people who are willing to help and contribute to the cause, and you can too. Wearing a ribbon, shoot, even mentioning breast cancer will help. Not all hope is lost, and with time comes improvement.

References

Community Health of Central Washington. (n.d.). October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. Retrieved November 1, 2022 from https://www.chcw.org/october-is-breast-cancer-awareness-month/#:~:text=Breast%20cancer%20is%20the%20most,research%20and%20life%2Dchanging%20support.

Breast Cancer Now. (2022, Nov. 2nd). Breast Cancer Awareness month. Retrieved November 1, 2022 from https://breastcancernow.org/get-involved/breast-cancer-awareness-month.

Geske E. (2021, Sept. 27th). How October & pink became associated with Breast Cancer Awareness month. Sullair. Retrieved November 1, 2022 from https://america.sullair.com/en/blog/how-october-pink-became-associated-breast-cancer-awareness-month.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022, Sept. 26). Breast Cancer in Men. Retrieved November 1, 2022 from https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/breast/men/index.htm#:~:text=Breast%20cancer%20is%20most%20often,is%20found%20in%20a%20man.&text=Invasive%20ductal%20carcinoma.,parts%20of%20the%20breast%20tissue.

National Cancer Institute. (2022, April 14th), Male breast cancer treatment (PDQ®)–patient version. Retrieved November 1, 2022 from https://www.cancer.gov/types/breast/patient/male-breast-treatment-pdq.

Unicity Healthcare. (2018, Oct. 12). Bringing awareness to breast cancer during October. Retrieved November 1, 2022 from https://unicityhealthcare.com/bringing-awareness-to-breast-cancer-during-october/.

The American Cancer Society Medical and Editorial Content Team. (2022, Oct. 6th). Breast cancer statistics: How common is breast cancer?. American Cancer Society. Retrieved November 1, 2022 from https://www.cancer.org/cancer/breast-cancer/about/how-common-is-breast-cancer.html#:~:text=Trends%20in%20breast%20cancer%20deaths&text=Breast%20cancer%20death%20rates%20have,as%20well%20as%20better%20treatments.

Frysh P. (2021, Feb. 4). How does breast cancer affect the body?. WebMD. Retrieved November 1, 2022 from https://www.webmd.com/breast-cancer/guide/breast-cancer-effects-body#:~:text=Sometimes%20breast%20cancer%20spreads%2C%20or,pressure%20on%20the%20spinal%20cord.

Mayo Clinic Staff. (2022, April 27). Breast Cancer. Mayo Clinic. Retrieved November 1, 2022 from https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/breast-cancer/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20352475.

BreastCancer.org. (2017, Feb. 3). Breast Cancer Treatment Causes Severe Side Effects in Many Women. Retrieved November 1, 2022 from https://www.breastcancer.org/research-news/tx-causes-severe-side-effects-for-many.

BreastCancer.org. (2022, Aug. 16). Male Breast Cancer. Retrieved November 7, 2022 from https://www.breastcancer.org/types/male-breast-cancer#:~:text=The%20risk%20of%20male%20breast,occur%20in%20young%20men%2C%20too

The American Cancer Society Medical and Editorial Content Team. (2022, Oct. 6). Breast cancer statistics: How common is breast cancer?. American Cancer Society. Retrieved November 7, 2022 from https://www.cancer.org/cancer/breast-cancer/about/how-common-is-breast-cancer.html#:~:text=Breast%20cancer%20mainly%20occurs%20in,cancer%20are%20younger%20than%2045.

BreastCancer.org. (2017, Feb. 3rd). Breast Cancer Treatment Causes Severe Side Effects in Many Women. Retrieved November 9, 2022 from https://www.breastcancer.org/research-news/tx-causes-severe-side-effects-for-many.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022, Sept. 26). How is breast cancer treated?. Retrieved November 9, 2022 from https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/breast/basic_info/treatment.htm#:~:text=Using%20special%20medicines%20to%20shrink,hormones%20they%20need%20to%20grow.