Healthcare agencies in Kentucky are recognizing October as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. They recommend all women over 40 should get annual mammograms to check for early signs.
The National Cancer Institute says around 13 percent of women will develop breast cancer at some point in their lives. Survival from breast cancer is much higher if doctors catch it at a much earlier stage.
“Because of our imaging advances, because of the way these mammograms can magnify and find these very small cancers, we're finding cancers before they're even invasive, or finding them at sub-centimeter sizes,” Markey Cancer Center oncologist Leah Winer said.
Winer says it’s also important to self-check regularly for symptoms. That can include lumps, thickening of the skin, inversion of the nipple, a change in texture of the areola or the skin, redness, or tenderness. Nipple discharge can also be associated with cancer.
Ways to prevent breast cancer include regular diet and exercise, and avoiding smoking. Those who have a family history or a genetic predisposition should also be sure to get tested.
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