So the benefit is tonight and we ladies are super pumped to take the stage for such a worthy cause.
We hope to see you all out there..
Here are some factoids about breast cancer and stuff...read...learn...and for more information check out www.komen.org
Many women do not have a chance to learn much about breast health or physiology unless they begin breastfeeding their children or they develop a problem that needs medical attention. Most people at least know that breasts change in appearance throughout life and that the breasts are composed of fat, but they are actually much more complex than that. The breasts are made up of a complicated network of milk-producing sacs, passageways for carrying milk, supporting tissue, glands, tiny muscles and fat. Throughout puberty and menopause, not only does the appearance of the breasts change but also the composition and workings of the breast tissue.
Becoming familiar with breast anatomy and physiology can help individuals understand the normal changes in their bodies that they experience throughout their lifetimes. This knowledge is also an important starting place for understanding health problems and diseases that affect the breasts.
Breast cancer is a type of cancer where cells in the breast tissue divide and grow without the normal control. About 80 percent of breast cancers originate in the mammary ducts, while about 20 percent arise in the lobules Cancerous tumors in the breast usually grow very slowly so that by the time one is large enough to be felt as a lump, it may have been growing for as long as ten years
In the United States, the rate of new cases of breast cancer has been increasing by a little over one percent a year since the 1940's. In the 1980's, the rate of new cases rose markedly (likely due to increased screening) and has since begun to level off. An estimated 212,920 new cases of breast cancer will be diagnosed in American women in 2006 alone. In 1975, the incidence (the number of new cases) of breast cancer was 107 per 100,000 for white women and 94 per 100,000 for black women. Twenty-seven years later in 2002, the number of new cases per year had risen to 138 per 100,000 for white women and 120 per 100,000 for black women.
Even though incidence increased during that 26-year period, mortality (the rate of death) for white women decreased. In 1975, 32 per 100,000 white women died of breast cancer, but by 2002, the figure had declined to 25. For black women, though, mortality increased over the same period, rising from 30 per 100,000 black women in the population in 1975 to 34 per 100,000 in 2002
Rates of male breast cancer have changed little over the past 25 years and are quite a bit lower than rates for female breast cancer. In 2002, the overall incidence of breast cancer in women was 133 per 100,000. In men, it was 1.2 per 100,000. Differences in mortality were equally wide: 26 per 100,000 for women, and 0.3 per 100,000 for men. Though both boys and girls begin life with very similar breast tissue, men do not experience the same complex growth and development of the breasts that women do over time. At puberty, the high testosterone and low estrogen levels essentially stop breast development in males. While some milk ducts exist, they remain undeveloped, and lobules are most often absent. However, breast health problems, including cancer, remain a possibility.
So far, researchers know of more than 20 factors that increase the risk of the disease. Some of these risk factors increase risk a great deal. Others increase risk by only a small amount. Yet while there have certainly been great advances in our knowledge, it's still not perfectly understood what ultimately causes breast cancer to develop. It's likely a combination of risk factors (many of which are still unknown) that together make cells in the breast turn cancerous. But exactly why a certain combination of factors might cause cancer in a particular woman and another combination would not is still unclear.
This highlights one of the more important things women need to know about breast cancer: although there are steps nearly all women can take to lower their risk of the disease, no one woman has full control over whether she gets breast cancer or not. Many risk factors for the disease are still unknown and many are simply out of a woman's control (such as getting older or having a family history of the disease).
Women, though, should not feel helpless at the prospect of breast cancer. There is a lot that women can do to protect themselves from the disease. Leading a healthy lifestyle can help lower risk and getting regular screening tests can catch breast cancer early when it's most treatable. Finally, having a general understanding of what factors may be increasing her risk can help a woman work with her health care provider to address concerns she has and develop an optimal breast health plan.
Breast cancer risk in women who partner with women and Lesbians
Although the data are somewhat limited, women who partner with women are believed to have a higher risk of breast cancer than other women. The reason? Women who partner with women tend to have more risk factors for the disease. For example, as a group, they are less likely to bear children or, if they do, are less likely to have them early in life. They may also have higher rates of obesity and alcohol use, both of which can increase the risk of breast cancer.
In addition to having more risk factors for breast cancer, women who partner with women may also be less likely to get routine mammograms and clinical breast exams. The reasons for this are not yet clear but may be due to issues like lack of insurance, financial hardship and past experiences of discrimination and insensitivity from health care providers.
Age is a well-established risk factor for breast cancer. The older a woman is, the more likely she is to develop the disease. In general, rates of breast cancer are low in women under age 40, begin to increase after age 40 and are highest in women over age 70. In the United States, 94 percent of the women diagnosed with breast cancer each year are age 40 or older. Age increases the risk of breast cancer because as women get older, it becomes more likely that abnormal changes will take place in their cells. Multiple changes have to occur within cells before cancer will develop. Mutations in the BRCA genes are not exclusive to women. Men also carry the mutations and some increased cancer risks associated with them. Both BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations may raise the risk of prostate cancer and have also been shown to significantly increase the risk of male breast cancer.
There is no sure way to avoid breast cancer. Some healthy lifestyle choices, however, may help lower the risk of the disease and have the added bonus of cutting the risk of heart disease, diabetes, colon cancer and osteoporosis. Everyone should try to:
- Be physically active.
- Maintain a healthy weight.
- Cut down on "bad" fats (saturated and trans fats), and consume more "good" fats (polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, like olive and canola oil).
- Take a daily multivitamin with folic acid (often called folate on nutrition labels).
- Limit alcohol intake to less than one alcoholic drink a day. (Regular drinkers should try to get adequate folic acid, either through a multivitamin or rich food sources like oranges, orange juice or fortified breakfast cereals.)
- Choose to breastfeed children instead of formula feeding them if possible.
Surgery and radiation therapy are called local treatments because they aim to remove cancer from a limited (local) area, such as the breast, chest wall and --> -->lymph nodes in the armpit (axillary nodes). Chemotherapy and hormonal therapy make up what is called systemic therapy. With these therapies, the entire body is treated to get rid of or disable any cancer cells that may have spread from the breast to other areas of the body. A woman's specific treatment plan depends on many factors, such as her age, the type of breast cancer she has and the characteristics of her tumor. However, deciding on a particular treatment is as much a personal matter for a woman as it is a medical one. Each treatment option has risks and benefits that a woman must weigh in relation to her personal values and lifestyle.