Breast Cancer Statistics
Breast cancer is a serious disease which should not be taken lightly by
anyone. It can affect you, your family or your friends without warning. For that reason, it is important to learn
as much as you can about the risk factors.
Here is a list of breast cancer statistics that can help you realize exactly how severe a problem breast cancer
is in the world today.
- Breast cancer is the second biggest cause of death in women. It is second only to lung cancer in women's
cancer mortality rates.
- In any given year, as many as 1.2 million women on average across the world will be diagnosed with breast
cancer. In 2006, in the United States, 191,410 women were diagnosed with breast cancer while 40,820 women died
as a result of breast cancer.
- The risk of a woman getting breast cancer at some point in her life is around 1 in 8. The risk for getting
breast cancer before age 30, however, is lower at 1 in 2,212.
- The 5-year survival rate for women under age 45 diagnosed in 1999-2003 for breast cancer is 72-86
percent.
- Roughly 77 percent of all breast cancer cases are diagnosed in women that are 50 years of age or
older.
- The highest risk of breast cancer is faced by those with white, Hawaiian, or African American ancestry.
This risk faced by these ethnicities is roughly 4 times as prevalent as the chance faced by the lowest risk
group.
- After women reach age forty, it is highly recommended they get a mammogram yearly. However, statistics show
that only 66.9 percent of all women over 40 have had a mammogram in the past two years.
- Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in a specific age group of women: 40 to 59.
- While the threat of breast cancer is still quite serious, statistics show that the death rates of women
from breast cancer in the United States have decreased by about 2.8 percent every year from 1990 to
2000.
As you can see, breast cancer is still a problem that is far-reaching and life-altering. Unfortunately, the
statistics do not show that a full 100 percent of women get an annual mammogram. If you are a woman over the age of
40, it is important to ensure that you are not one of the 33.1 percent of women who are in the dark about the
status of their breast health. Early detection of breast cancer can lead to being able to fix the problem before it
becomes too late. Fear is never an adequate excuse for not getting a mammogram yearly; it is an important and
necessary process for not only those who are at high risk for breast cancer but for all women.
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