Consider these statistics regarding breast cancer in the United States:

• In her lifetime, one in eight women will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer.

• It is estimated that 178,480 women will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer in 2007.  This is a 16% decrease from 2006.

• A woman will be diagnosed with breast cancer, an average, every three minutes.

• It is projected that 40,460 women will die from breast cancer in 2007.  Therefore, a woman will die from breast cancer on average, every 13 minutes.

• In men, incidence of breast cancer in 2007 is estimated at 2,030.  This is an increase from 1,720 in 2006.   Projected deaths due to breast cancer among men are 450.

• Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women, except for non-melanoma skin cancers.

• Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in women, after lung cancer.

• The rate of breast cancer deaths has steadily declined in women since 1990, with larger decreases in women younger than 50 (3.3% per year) than in women 50 and older (2.0% per year.) These decreases are due to a combination of earlier detection and improved treatment.

• According to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, mammography rates among women 40 and older significantly declined from 76.4% in 2000 to 74.6% in 2005.  The report states that the decline suggests a need for more careful monitoring because mammography screening every one to two years can significantly reduce breast cancer mortality. 

• The National Cancer Institute estimates that in 2003 (the latest year that results are available) at least 2.3 million women with a history of breast cancer were alive in the U.S.  Some were cancer-free and some still had evidence of cancer and may have been undergoing treatment. 

Source: 2007 American Cancer Society; National Cancer Institute, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's January 26 Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

• Current research findings suggest that physical activity, a healthy diet, and a healthy weight can help reduce the risk of getting breast cancer for the first time or having a breast cancer come back.

• All women 40 and over should get an annual mammogram and an annual clinical breast exam.

• Women 20-39 should have a clinical breast exam, preferably at least every three years.

• From age 20, women who choose to do a breast self-exam should receive instruction and have their technique reviewed at the time of their periodic health examination.
  
  
• Women at increased risk (e.g., family history, genetic tendency, past breast cancer) should talk with their doctors about the benefits and limitations of starting mammography screening earlier, having additional tests (i.e., breast ultrasound and MRI), or having more frequent exams.