If everyone took a moment to think, I am almost positive that you know someone who has been affected by breast cancer. I always used to believe that my family and friends were invincible to such a terrible cancer, but I was completely wrong. I have watched a women of only 40 years beat breast cancer, and I have also witnessed a close friend, at the ripe age of 22, go through numerous doctors appointments in order to rule her new found lumps as benign. We may not want to accept it, but it is undeniably real and could affect any of us at any given moment.
Out of all the races, white women hold the greatest risk of getting breast cancer, while African American women are the most likely to die from it. The scariest part about breast cancer, in my opinion, has to be its unpreventable nature. While steps can and should be taken to reduce ones risk, there is no way to be sure that you will be able to avoid such a blind attacker. Even I have fallen short of keeping up with my monthly Breast Self-Exam (BSE), but after discovering these horrific facts I will be sure to make a stronger effort.
1. A woman has a 1 in 8 chance of developing breast cancer in her lifetime.
2. Every three minutes, there is a new diagnosis of invasive breast cancer.
3. Every 13 minutes, a life is lost to breast cancer.
These three statistical facts have truly got the wheels in my head turning and have solidified my fight against breast cancer. It only takes a few minutes to do a BSE each month and those minutes could be the difference between life and death. So for all of those women out there reading this, if you are 20 years of age or older, do a BSE regularly and never be afraid to have a doctor rule out any potential worries you may have. Also, be sure to receive a clinical breast exam (CBE) every three years until you reach the age of 40, in which it then increases to a yearly exam.
The information provided above only scratches the surface of knowledge on breast cancer. More statistics and facts can be found through the AVON website.
