ISU Bengal

Issue date: 2/2/05 Section: News

Before they die, approximately 940 of the more than 7,000 women students at ISU are likely to contract breast cancer.

According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), 13.4 percent or 1 in every 7 women in the United States will develop invasive breast cancer in their lives, making it the most common cancer among women.

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of death in women, though only 1 in every 33 cases is likely to result in death. Although the incident rate of breast cancer has only increased among those 50 years of age and older, the ACS still estimates that 211,240 new cases of breast cancer will be diagnosed in 2005.

Women, however, are not the only ones at risk. Breast cancer is also found among men. Any form of cancer is caused by uncontrollable cell division in a part of the body. Breast cancer is caused by the division of a malignant, or cancerous, tumor that starts from cells of the breast. Most forms of breast cancer begin in the ducts of the breast which both men and women have. The ACS estimates 1,700 new cases will be found among men in 2005, with 27 percent, or 460 of those cases leading to death. In 1997, 102 cases were found among men in Idaho while 111 were diagnosed in women.

Although neither the presence nor absence of any factor will determine whether an individual develops the disease, the likelihood of developing breast cancer can be assessed by certain risk factors. The main risk factor identified by medical educators at Florida State University is being a woman. In addition, the risk for breast cancer increases with age. Cases are rarely diagnosed among those 25 years of age and younger, but beyond that age, the incidence gradually increases and peaks among those 50 years of age.

Those who have a close relative such as a mother or aunt, who has a history with breast cancer, are more likely to develop it. Individuals who have already had breast cancer once are more likely to develop it again than those who have no history. Other risk factors include obesity, whether or not the individual is pregnant and at what age she bares children.

There are more than 2 million women currently in the United States who have already been diagnosed and treated for the disease.

There are a little more than 2 million women currently in the United States who have already been diagnosed and treated for the disease.

Jessica Lum is a senior majoring in Mass Communications. She can be reached at lumjess@isu.edu

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