Column: Preventing and Detecting Breast Cancer

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The American Cancer Society estimates one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer during their lifetime. In 2024, approximately 310,720 women were diagnosed with an invasive form of breast cancer and though rarer, approximately 2,800 men received the same diagnosis.

While there isn’t one magic solution to prevent breast cancer, certain lifestyle practices, early detection, and swift treatment can help reduce the development or the spread of this disease.

Look at your lifestyle. Maintaining a healthy weight and exercising regularly are good for you and not for cancer. Eat a balanced diet, limit alcohol, and avoid smoking. Find healthy ways to relieve stress and incorporate moderate and vigorous physical activity into your exercise routine.

Practice breast self-awareness. In the past, monthly breast self-exams were recommended. Most experts now advise breast self-awareness. Knowing what's normal for your breasts will help you notice small changes in how they look or feel.

Get screened. A clinical breast exam is part of a woman's annual health visit, which includes age-related health discussions, physical exams, screenings, immunizations, and topics like hygiene, nutrition, exercise, sexual health, and domestic violence. Beginning at age 40, your provider will recommend a mammogram, usually repeated every 1-2 years. Talk with your care provider about which screenings are best for you. If you have a family history of cancer, a breast MRI or a more frequent screening schedule may be recommended.

Understand your treatment options. If you receive a cancer diagnosis, familiarize yourself with the treatment options. The two main treatments for breast cancer are local and systemic treatments. Local treatments, such as surgery and radiation, remove, destroy, or control cancer cells in one area of the body. System treatments destroy or control cancer cells throughout the whole body. Chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and immunotherapy are systemic treatments. Treatments are usually used together, most often with breast surgery.

Explore your surgical choices. Surgery can remove cancerous cells, prevent the spread of cancer, or lower the risk that a cancer may come back. Common breast cancer surgeries are mastectomies and breast reconstruction. A mastectomy removes part or all of the breast. In some cases, a surgeon may remove lymph nodes under the arm. After the cancer is removed, surgery may be used to reconstruct a breast. A plastic surgeon can do this with either the patient’s own tissue or an implant.

Breast cancer is not just a diagnosis, but a journey. If you have questions, talk with your care provider. Discuss breast cancer prevention strategies and, if needed, the treatment and surgical choices.

Stephen Osterberg, MD provides surgical care for patients of all ages. He performs a wide array of general surgery procedures. For more information, visit BartonHealth.org or call 530.543.5691.