October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Why is this important? Did you know that breast cancer is the second highest cancer diagnosed in Canada? For women it is the number one cancer, where 1 in 8 women will have breast cancer at some point. Good news is that if detected early, survival is much greater. So the point of spreading the news is to remind women to get their mammograms and perform breast checks regularly.
83% of breast cancer in Canada are found in women over the age of 50, and 88% of these women will live at least five-years after their diagnosis. This is only made possible with early discovery. Scanning for breast cancer and regular self-checks allows for detection of breast cancer at its early stages where treatment has a high success rate.
COVID pandemic has had an impact on healthcare, but don’t let it prevent you or someone you know from accessing the life saving detection tool of a mammogram. Don’t miss your mammogram schedule, and seek regular breast cancer screening by asking your doctor, if any of these apply to you:
- Family history of breast cancer (whether you are male or female)
- BReast CAncer gene (BRCA) mutation
- Female 50 years and older
- Taking estrogen
What can you do to decrease your risk of breast cancer? A healthy lifestyle with proper nutrition and exercise will reduce the probability of cancer, including breast cancer.
Checking your breast for any changes, after bathing or showering is a good habit and easy to remember. Breast changes should not be interpreted as cancer, as there are many causes. However, follow up with your doctor so that if it is, cancer can be caught early.
Breast cancer touches all of us, spreading awareness may save your mother, wife, sister, daughter or friend. Talk to your local PharmaChoice pharmacist for more information.
