Breast Cancer Myth vs. Reality

Young women do not get breast cancer: Breast cancer is more common in post menopausal women, however, people of any age can get breast cancer. Women under the age of 50, make up 25% of breast cancer cases.

Breast cancer is preventable: It's possible to pinpoint risk factors, i.e. inherited gene mutations, family history, and then make lifestyle changes that reduce risks. However, breast cancer is not preventable and largely occurs by chance. Around 70% of women diagnosed with breast cancer did not possess identifiable risk factors.

Plastic surgery causes breast cancer: There is no relation between breast augmentation/plastic surgery and increased breast cancer risk. Breast implants can make mammograms more difficult. Women who undergo breast reduction surgery can see a decrease in breast cancer risk.

Women with small breasts have reduced risks of getting breast cancer: There is no known connection between likelihood of getting breast cancer and a woman's breast size. Large breasts, however, may be more difficult to examine.

Wearing anti-perspirant increases your chances of getting breast cancer: A small, inconclusive study saw parabens traces in a tiny sample of breast cancer tumors. Some antiperspirants carry parabens, a preservative that has estrogen-like properties. More research needs to be done.

A breast injury can cause breast cancer: Any trauma to the breast does not cause breast cancer. The reasoning behind this is an injury can give prominence to a breast lump that could have been there already.

A dairy-free diet prevents breast cancer: This is not true. There is no evidence to support this claim. Keep drinking milk!

Caffeine causes breast cancer: No connection has been discovered between getting breast cancer and drinking caffeine. Some research shows that drinking caffeine may decrease risks.

Fertility treatments increase risks of getting breast cancer: Given the link between estrogen and breast cancer, fertility treatments have been scrutinized. Other studies found such treatments don't result in a high risk of getting breast cancer. More research needs to be done to merit or discount this.

Soy products protect against breast cancer: Soy bean products possess phytoestrogen compounds. These compounds can bind estrogen receptors. In theory, such compounds could prevent estrogens and thus reduce breast cancer risk. However, two clinical studies have been administered and show no evidence of any preventative/protective effects of soy.

Breast cancer only comes in the form of a lump: A lump can indicate that you have breast cancer, but women should also be aware of other bodily signals, like: swelling, dimpling, skin irritation, nipple/breast pain, a nipple that's turned inward, scaliness, redness, thickening of the breast skin/nipple, discharge that isn't milk.

Women overweight have the same breast cancer risks as other women: Obese or overweight women do have increase risks. This is especially the case for women past menopause and/or women that have gained weight later in life.

A meat-free diet prevents breast cancer: No epidemiological study shows a relation between breast cancer risk and meat consumption.

If you drink from a plastic water bottle that was left in a hot car, you can get cancer: This rumor wrongly asserts that dioxins--a body of toxic chemicals associated with numerous health problems like breast cancer--seep from the hot plastic into the bottled water. Dioxins are not found in plastics and the sun's heat rays aren't strong enough to create dioxins.

Daughters of men who have breast cancer can have a higher risk of contracting breast cancer than if their mother had the disease: Yes. Many men with breast cancer have a genetic mutation that can be inherited. Males with breast cancer should have genetic counseling to determine if their cancer is because of a known gene mutation. If they have these mutations, then "yes" daughters of these men have a higher risk of developing breast cancer than if their mother had the disease (without a known genetic link).