Mammograms and Younger Women
Because of the increased risk of breast cancer, it is generally recommended that women over 40 get a screening mammogram every year. For women under 40, however, this is not usually recommended, because of the possible effects of accumulated radiation exposure with greater numbers of mammograms over a lifetime. Another factor is that because screening mammograms are not as accurate detecting cancer in younger women. This is because younger women have denser breast tissue, which tends to shield lumps and malformations from mammogram detection.
The one exception to the mammogram rule is when younger women have higher risk factors for breast cancer than the normal.
Some of these risk factors include:
- Family history of the disease (which doubles the risk for younger women)
- Previous radiation therapy to the chest area
- Previous incidence of breast cancer
- Genetic defects detected through blood test (primarily BRCA 1 and 2 mutations)
Because screening mammograms are not taken as often, or because they can miss cancers more easily, younger women tend to have cancers that are at a more advanced stage when they are finally detected, which automatically reduces the odds of survival. In part this is because such tests are not recommended; but it is also because younger women simply aren’t made as conscious of the threat of breast cancer as older women, and they tend to ignore breast cancer symptoms when they first occur. So to some extent, the higher mortality rates among younger women with breast cancer is related to the fact that neither the medical profession nor younger women themselves are as on-alert to the risk of this disease as they should be, because of complacency bred by the fact that almost 95% of breast cancer victims are past the age of 40.
Possible Preventative Solutions for Younger Women
Ultrasound and MRI are two diagnostic tools that are being used more frequently to detect breast cancer, and they could be good alternatives for younger women who are concerned about contracting this potentially deadly disease. Younger women would also be wise to begin giving themselves regular breast self-examinations from the age of about 20 on; this is already recommended by health professionals, but it is up to younger women to become more conscious of the threat presented by breast cancer and to actually do it. And when they find something unusual in their breast during such an examination, whether it be a lump under the skin, swelling or redness, discharges from the nipple, or unusual dappling or wrinkling of the skin, they need to consult with a physician as soon as possible, instead of just assuming it can’t be breast cancer because they are too young to be stricken with this disease.
For younger women who know they are at higher risk of developing the disease, warnings about the threat presented by breast cancer are probably not necessary. But for younger women who do not have any known risk factors, or who may have them but not know it, it is essential that they not ignore the possibility of contracting breast cancer simply because they are under the age of 40. Thousands of young women die in the United States each year from this disease but because 90% of all breast cancers are curable if caught in their early stages, this tragic situation does not have to continue.
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