National Breast Cancer awareness month is certainly a good time for women to learn the latest about breast cancer, early detection and treatment options. According to the American Cancer Society breast cancer is the most common cancer in women. The average risk of women in the U. S. developing breast cancer is 12% and it affects 1 out of 8 women.
So what can women do to lower their risk of developing breast cancer and improve their overall breast health? There is no sure way to prevent breast cancer and some risk factors, such as age and inherited genetic mutations do increase a woman’s chance of developing the disease, but there are steps and alternative approaches that can be taken to improve overall breast health. Read more to explore these options.
Combining traditional and alternative approaches to improve breast health:
For years women have been taught to have regular screenings for breast cancer, such as mammograms with their age and risk level determining the frequency of the mammogram. The revised and current American Cancer Society guidelines of 2015 recommend that women should start having yearly mammograms at age 45. https://www.cancer.org/content/cancer/en/latest-news//american-cancer-society-releases-new-breast-cancer-guidelines/
Along with this, women are encouraged to perform self-breast exams to detect changes in the breast tissue or lumps. However, the current emphasis is “breast self-awareness”, knowing your breast and being familiar with changes instead of doing “detailed” breast exams. Of course, if any changes in the breast are detected by a woman, she should discuss this with her physician and together they can discuss next steps.
These approaches are still recommended and have led to early detection and treatment of breast cancer, but there are some non-traditional approaches that women can consider and add to their health practices to improve overall breast health.
Dr. Christine Northrup, a well-known gynecologist and women’s health expert, offers another approach to breast health. In a recent blog post by Dr. Northrop, entitled Heal Your 4th Chakra for Life-Long Health, she talks about how the energy to this chakra can affect our breast health. The fourth chakra, which supplies energy to the breast, heart and lungs is associated with nurturing of ourselves and others. If the energy patterns of this chakra are disrupted for long periods it can result in disease development. According to Dr. Northrup, this can happen if a person holds onto damaging emotions such as anger, resentment, grief, bitterness and unforgiveness. She explains that some of the ways that women can improve their breast health can be to improve the energy moving through the fourth chakra. This can occur through physical activity such as yoga to improve lymph drainage; massage for self-nurturing and improving lymph flow; and gratitude and positive affirmations.
In the most current clinical guidelines from the Society for Integrative Oncology (SIO), which includes researchers from respected institutions such as Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and other institutions in the U.S., alternative treatments were evaluated for effectiveness and safety for patients with breast cancer. The experts gave alternative treatments a letter grade to support use. Meditation received an “A” grade and had the strongest evidence supporting its use for anxiety, treating symptoms of depression and improving a person’s quality of life. Yoga received a “B” grade for improving quality of life. Clinical Practice Guidelines on the evidence-based use of integrative therapies during and after breast cancer treatment; April 24, 2017; CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.
The role of exercise and eating a healthy diet also plays a role in breast cancer care and can help women undergoing cancer treatment. The American Cancer Society includes being physically active and maintaining a healthy weight as two ways of lowering a women’s risk of developing breast cancer. The Siteman Cancer Center of the Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis lists eight ways women can prevent breast cancer:
· Keep weight in check
· Be physically active
· Eat fruits and vegetables and avoid too much alcohol
· Don’t smoke
· Breastfeed if possible
· Avoid birth control pills after age 35
· Avoid post-menopausal hormones
· Tamoxifen and raloxifene for women at high risk
Staying educated and being well informed on breast cancer prevention and treatment is an important part of women’s health and it does not have to be overwhelming or fear-based. Hopefully the information in this article will raise awareness and assist many women in improving their breast health and over-all wellbeing.
References:
https://www.cancer.org/cancer/breast-cancer/risk-and -prevention/can-i-lower-my-risk.html.
https://www.cancer.org/latest-news/american-cancer-society-releases-new-breast-cancer-guidelines.html.
https://www.drnorthrup.com/category/health/womens-bodies/breast-health/
https://www.siteman.wustl.edu/prevention/take -proactive-control/8-ways-to-prevent-breast-cancer/