NON-MODIFIABLE RISK FACTORS   MODIFIABLE RISK FACTORS    Gender   Age   Personal breast cancer history   Family history   Proliferative breast conditions > Breast density   Early menstruation/ Late menopause    Radiation exposure   Reproduction   Breastfeeding   Hormone replacement therapy   Oral contraceptives   Body weight   Physical activity   Alcohol use   Tobacco smoke (for younger women)

BREAST DENSITY

Breast density is now being recognized as a major risk factor for breast cancer. Studies have shown that women who have dense breasts are more likely to develop breast cancer than women whose breasts are less dense.

Breast density can only be measured through mammography, and is based on the relative amount of different tissues in the breast. A woman’s breasts are considered dense if they have less fatty tissue and more connective and glandular tissue.  Breast density has nothing to do with the size of a woman’s breasts, and can not be determined by how they look or feel. 

Breast density is largely influenced by inherited genes and also tends to change over a woman’s life course. Younger women tend to have denser breasts and breast density usually decreases after menopause. However some postmenopausal women still have dense breasts.