Breast Cancer Risk Factors
As women age, their risk of developing breast cancer increases. Genetics also play a significant role, with certain mutagenic tendencies being inheritable. However, lifestyle factors can also influence this risk. These include the use of artificial hormones (such as oral contraceptives or hormone replacement therapy), exposure to radiation, frequent alcohol consumption, poor diet, toxic overload, obesity, and lack of exercise.
Another important risk factor is breast density. Women with dense breasts are more likely to develop breast cancer because they have less fatty tissue, which is lower risk, and more glandular tissue, which is higher risk. This dense tissue also makes it harder to detect abnormalities using mammograms.
Detection Using Mammograms
Increased awareness, self-examinations, and technological advances have likely contributed to the dramatic rise in breast cancer cases in the United States in recent years. The ability of mammograms to detect cancer improves as women age. However, many women use their perceived risk factors to decide whether they should get regular mammograms.
Reading and interpreting mammograms can be challenging even for medical practitioners. While mammograms can help detect some breast abnormalities, they might also increase the occurrence of breast cancer.
Did You Know That Mammograms May Cause Breast Cancer?
Recent research suggests that repeated exposure to mammograms may be an independent risk factor for breast cancer. Although many medical experts still recommend regular mammograms to detect small tumors, opposition to the practice is growing.
It’s worth noting that ionizing radiation from mammograms has decreased from 5-10 rads in the 1970s to 1 rad today. According to Dr. Frank Rauscher, each 1 rad of exposure increases breast cancer risk by one percent, which could become significant over many years of exposure. Additionally, mammograms do not detect all tumors and often result in biopsy testing, even for benign lumps, making mammography an expensive and unreliable option for detecting breast cancer.
A study by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore evaluated breast cancer mortality statistics in women following five annual mammograms starting at various ages. They found that women who underwent five mammograms between the ages of 24 and 29 would have an additional 26 breast cancers per 10,000 women due to the radiation. Mammograms between the ages of 30 and 34 would produce an excess of 20 additional cancers, and between 35 and 39, an additional 13 cancers.
You Have Options
Tumors in the breast are fed by blood vessels generated by the cancer, which are not controlled by the autonomic nervous system like the rest of the blood vessels in the breast. A non-invasive and non-squishing method for detecting masses in the breast is available.
This method, called thermography, uses thermal imaging to detect “hot spots” in the breast. Thermographic detection of these spots is more reliable than mammography because the blood flow pattern changes long before the tumor is large enough to be detected by x-ray.
This early detection allows patients to monitor their breasts more closely and implement lifestyle changes that could prevent the tumor from growing or even allow them to heal completely before the tumor becomes unmanageable. A positive thermography should be seen as an opportunity for serious preventative measures.
New research and technology are constantly being developed to detect and treat breast cancer. While you can’t control all of your risk factors, like age, gender, or genetics, you can significantly influence risk factors related to your diet, environment, exercise regime, and mammograms.
I have been against the use of mammograms for over 10 years and truly believe that the radiation may induce the proliferation of cancerous cells. Thermography has come a long way and is a much safer way, in my opinion, to have the breasts screened. I recommend going to OmniBody Scan for more information or to find a practitioner in your area. The OmniBody Scan uses a liquid nitrogen camera with sensitive medical infrared lenses to detect temperature variations in the breast tissue, all without the harmful effects of radiation.
