HJBR May/Jun 2025

52 MAY / JUN 2025 I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF BATON ROUGE ONCOLOGY DIAL GUE COLUMN ONCOLOGY The Who Breast cancer is the most common cancer inAmerican women other than skin cancers. One in 8 women will develop breast cancer in their lifetime, accounting for about 30% of all new female cancer diagnoses each year. In 2025, about 316,950 women are expected to be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer, while 59,080 will be diagnosed with ductal carcinoma in situ, a noninvasive breast can- cer. About 42,170 women are expected to die from breast cancer in 2025. Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in women after lung cancer. White women are more likely to devel- op breast cancer, while Black and Hispanic women are more likely to develop a more aggressive form of breast cancer and to be diagnosed at a later stage. Early detection through screening tests like mammograms is crucial to improving outcomes. The Why It is important that a woman know her risk factors, including her family history. There are hereditary mutations, passed down from the biological mother or father, that can for breast cancer such as these hereditary mutations, family history, or being a woman and aging, there are many controllable risk factors. Four important controllable risk re- duction factors are healthy nutrition, routine exercise, minimal alcohol consumption, and not smoking. These four lifestyle modifica- tions can not only reduce the risk for breast cancer, but they can also reduce the risk for other cancers, heart disease, diabetes, and stroke. Whether a woman is at an average risk or increased risk for breast cancer, she should be encouraged to follow these risk reduction measures. If a woman does develop breast cancer, she should know her treatment options. Che- motherapy, surgery, radiation, and endocrine therapy may all be part of a patient’s treat- ment options. Surgery is a component of the standard treatment strategy for most patients with breast cancer. Surgical options include mastectomy, when the entire breast is re- moved, and lumpectomy, when a portion of the breast is removed, followed by radiation. Mastectomy is chosen by or recommended for approximately 50% of women in the U.S. with breast cancer. However, more women increase her risk for developing breast cancer. The most common hereditary mutations that increase the risk for breast cancer include BRCA1 and BRCA2. While it is important to know if a woman does have a hereditary mu- tation that increases her risk of breast cancer, patients with these mutations account for only about 5 to 10% of breast cancers. Women should be encouraged to assess other risk factors for breast cancer. These can include age, family history, lifestyle choices, never breast-feeding, and reproductive his- tory, including not having children or having the first child after the age of 30. Other risk factors include a personal history of atypia in the breast, breast density, and exposure to radiation to the chest before the age of 30, such as for the treatment of cancers. If a woman is at increased risk as com- pared to the standard patient population, she should be encouraged, according to nation- al guidelines, to be evaluated in a high-risk breast cancer clinic. These women are often monitored more frequently than just yearly mammograms and often alternate mammo- grams with high-riskMRIs as screening tools. While there are uncontrollable risk factors Who, Why, & What to Do if You are Diagnosed BREAST CANCER