Breast Cancer Awareness Month: Educating Young Women

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and we want to remind our community to be aware of the risk factors surrounding breast cancer and some of the steps you may take for early detection, which is key in the fight against this disease.

It’s important to remember that young women can get breast cancer. Mammograms may not be as effective for younger women due to denser breast tissue, but you can still keep vigilant about your breast health. All young women should understand the signs and symptoms of breast cancer, and become familiar with your breasts, so you can tell your doctor immediately about any changes.

Among the risk factors associated with breast cancer are: being overweight or obese, being female, being a smoker, consuming alcohol, having certain benign breast conditions, and beginning your period before age 12. Risk factors don’t mean you will get cancer, but if you are at higher risk, you can incorporate healthy life habits to help counteract that risk.

Most researchers consider young women at high risk if they have a strong family history of breast or ovarian cancer, or certain genetic mutations associated with breast cancer like the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes.

Some women experience no warning signs, but the most common symptom of breast cancer is the discovery of a lump or mass. Other symptoms may include: swelling of all or part of a breast, skin irritation or dimpling, breast or nipple pain, nipple retraction, redness, scaliness, thickening of nipple or breast skin, and nipple discharge. Because breast cancer can spread to lymph nodes under the arm and around the collar bone, swollen lymph nodes should also be reported to your doctor.