Are you at risk?
Most women have more than one known risk factor for breast cancer, yet will never get the disease.
Some risk factors are things that you do not have any control over, while others can be changed. What are the most common risk factors for? Simply being female and growing older. But remember, there is no one cause of breast cancer. If you are concerned about your risk, talk with your health care provider. Here is a list of some known risk factors:
• being a woman
• getting older
• having an inherited mutation in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 breast cancer gene
• lobular carcinoma in situ (LCIS)
• a personal history of breast or ovarian cancer
• a family history of breast, ovarian or prostate cancer
• having high breast density on a mammogram
• having a previous biopsy showing atypical hyperplasia
• starting menopause after age 55
• never having children
• having your first child after age 35
• radiation exposure, frequent X-rays in youth
• high bone density
• being overweight after menopause or gaining weight as an adult
• postmenopausal hormone use (current or recent use) of estrogen or estrogen plus progestin
For more information about these and other risk
factors, visit www.komen.org/risk
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