Gender
Being a woman is one of the strongest risk factors for breast cancer. Men also get breast cancer, although the incidence of male breast cancer is rare with fewer than one percent of all breast cancer cases in Canada occuring in men. Despite the small number of cases, breast cancer in men is not well understood, stigmatized, and often mis-diagnosed or diagnosed late.
Why is breast cancer more common in women? Women’s breast duct cells are more developed than men's, and women’s breast cells are constantly exposed to the female hormone estrogen, which is essential to women’s normal growth, development and reproduction, and is also a risk factor in the development of breast cancer.
In Canada, about one woman in nine will develop breast cancer in her lifetime. In 2011, an estimated 23,400 women in Canada will be diagnosed with breast cancer. During the same year, an estimated 190 men will be diagnosed.
Age
The risk of developing breast cancer significantly increases as women age, but women of all ages can develop breast cancer.
Eighty per cent of breast cancer cases and 90 percent of breast cancer deaths in Canada occur in women over the age of 50.
Although breast cancer in women under 50 is less common, younger women do get the disease. In fact, 1 in 6 women who die from breast cancer are diagnosed in their 40s.
In 2011, it is estimated that there will be:
965 new cases of breast cancer diagnosed in women under the age of 40, representing about 4 per cent of all new breast cancer cases.
3,500 new cases of breast cancer diagnosed in women 40-49, representing about 14 per cent of all new breast cancer cases.
Breast cancers in younger women, who are pre-menopausal, tend to be more aggressive and less responsive to treatment than those that are found in older women.
At any age, women can learn how to reduce their risk of breast cancer and be breast aware, to know how the breasts normally look and feel, and to discuss any breast changes or concerns you have with a health care provider.
To make an informed decision about what is right for you, the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation encourages you to learn about your breast health, breast cancer risk, ways to reduce your risk, and your screening options for the earlier detection of breast cancer. To inform your decisions, we also encourage you to consider speaking to a health care provider.
Established risk factors
Sources
Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation–Ontario Region. (2010). Earlier Detection and Diagnosis of Breast Cancer: A Report from It’s About Time! A Consensus Conference.
Canadian Cancer Society’s Steering Committee on Cancer Statistics. Canadian Cancer Statistics 2011, Toronto, ON: Canadian Cancer Society, 2011. Accessed July 31, 2011.