Understand your breast cancer and prevent it

IF YOU ARE CONCERNED ABOUT YOUR BREAST CANCER. FOLLOW THESE STEPS TO PREVENT IT

1. Keep Weight in Check

2. Be Physically Active

3. Eat Your Fruits & Vegetables – and Avoid Too Much Alcohol

4. Don’t Smoke

5. Breastfeed, If Possible

6. Avoid Birth Control Pills, Particularly After Age 35 or If You Smoke

7. Avoid Post-Menopausal Hormones

8. Tamoxifen and Raloxifene for Women at High Risk

Find Out Your Family History

Understanding your risk of breast cancer

Several breast cancer risk assessment tools have been developed to help a woman estimate her chance of developing breast cancer. After you enter some personal and family information, including race/ethnicity, the tool provides you with a 5-year and lifetime estimate of the risk of developing invasive breast cancer. Because it only asks for information about breast cancer in first-degree family members and does not include their age at diagnosis, the tool works best at estimating risk in women without a strong inherited breast cancer risk. For some women, other ways of determining the risk of breast cancer may work better. For example, women with an inherited breast cancer risk may consider talking to a genetic counselor.

It is important to talk with your doctor about how to find out your personal risk of breast cancer and to discuss risk-reducing or prevention options (see below).

Prevention

Different factors cause different types of cancer. Researchers continue to look into what factors cause breast cancer. Although there is no proven way to completely prevent this disease, you may be able to lower your risk. Talk with your doctor for more information about your personal risk of breast cancer.

• Mastectomy. For women with BRCA1 or BRCA2 genetic mutations, which substantially increase the risk for breast cancer, the preventive removal of the breasts may be considered. The procedure, called a prophylactic mastectomy, appears to reduce the risk of developing breast cancer by at least 95%. Women with these mutations should also consider the preventive removal of the ovaries and fallopian tubes, called a prophylactic salpingo-oophorectomy. This procedure can reduce the risk of developing ovarian cancer, as well as breast cancer, by stopping the ovaries from making estrogen. Talk with your doctor about possible physical and emotional side effects when considering having these procedures.
• Chemoprevention. Women who have a higher risk of developing breast cancer may consider chemoprevention. Chemoprevention is the use of hormone-blocking drugs to reduce cancer risk. The drugs, tamoxifen (Nolvadex, Soltamox) and raloxifene (Evista), are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to lower breast cancer risk. These drugs are called selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs) and are not chemotherapy. A SERM is a medication that blocks estrogen receptors in some tissues and not others. Postmenopausal women and premenopausal women may take tamoxifen. Raloxifene is only approved for postmenopausal women. Each drug also has different side effects. Talk with your doctor about whether you may benefit from chemoprevention for breast cancer.
  Aromatase inhibitors (AIs) are also being looked at to reduce breast cancer risk. AIs are a type of hormone-blocking treatment that reduces the amount of estrogen in a woman's body by stopping tissues and organs other than the ovaries from producing estrogen. For example, an AI called exemestane (Aromasin) has shown promise in reducing breast cancer risk. However, AIs can only be used by women who have gone through menopause. Exemestane is not yet approved by the FDA for lowering breast cancer risk in women who do not have the disease. Read more about drugs to reduce breast cancer risk.
  Other drugs being looked at to reduce breast cancer risk include statins, which lower cholesterol, and metformin (multiple brand names), a drug commonly used for diabetes.
• Lifestyle choices. One way to lower your risk of breast cancer includes getting regular physical activity. Studies suggest that 30 to 60 minutes per day of moderate- to high-intensity physical activity is associated with a lower breast cancer risk. Other ways include staying at a healthy weight, limiting the amount of alcohol you drink, and avoiding the use of post-menopausal hormone therapy to ease menopause symptoms. Breastfeeding may also reduce a woman’s breast cancer risk. Learn about more lifestyle choices that may help lower your risk of breast cancer.