Breast cancer awareness month presentation Wednesday at Otowi Building

As part of national breast cancer awareness month, Occupational Medicine (HSR-2) is hosting a presentation Wednesday designed to raise awareness of the need for periodic breast self-examinations.

The Lab's Positive Health Promotion team in HSR-2 is sponsoring the event at noon in the Otowi Building side rooms at Technical Area 3. It is free and open to all Laboratory workers.

Ginny Newman, a physician's assistant, will discuss several health issues, including the impact of lifestyle on health. Women's Self-Care Guides will be distributed along with other health information and there will be a drawing for two $15 Brookstone gift certificates, said Diane Min Fa of HSR-2, the Lab's Positive Health Promotion coordinator.

Min Fa said the HSR-2 Health Promotion team also is sponsoring a contest (for women only) to encourage regular breast self-examinations. Women can go to the Wellness Center Conference Room (106) at TA-3 and practice locating lumps with the new breast self-exam education model, then enter their name and the number of lumps counted into the drawing. Min Fa said women also can pick up more information about screening and shower cards that provide reminders of the importance of regular self-exams. The contest is open to all Laboratory women including subcontractors and spouses and ends Oct. 31.

Min Fa said the American Cancer Society provided the following information about breast cancer:

• This year, an estimated 211,300 new cases of invasive breast cancer (stages I to IV) are expected to occur among women in the United States and approximately 1,300 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in men.
• Another 55,700 new cases of noninvasive Carcinoma in situ (stage 0) will occur in women.
• There are currently more than two million women in this country who have been diagnosed with, and treated for, breast cancer.
• Approximately 40,200 people will die from breast cancer in the United States – 39,800 women and 400 men, this year.

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in women, but accounts for only about 0.22 percent of cancer deaths among men. Incidence rates have increased at around 2 percent per year (much of the increase is seen in women over 50), but death rates have been declining. This decline is thought to be due to earlier detection and improved treatment. The five-year survival rates demonstrate clearly that early detection improves the rate of survival, Min Fa said.

"Being educated about breast cancer and risk factors is important. Most breast lumps are benign and are associated with fibrocycstic breast disease, which is very common in women. But a visit to a primary care physician for a thorough examination is required," said Min Fa. Similarly, having one or several risk factors does not mean that a person will develop breast cancer, and some factors influence risk more than others, such as gender, age, genetics, family history and race, she said.

Risk factors related to personal choices, such as oral contraceptive use, hormone replacement therapy, alcohol, diet and physical activity, can be modified to reduce risk and improve a person's lifestyle. Known risk factors for men include age, family history, Klinefelter's syndrome, radiation exposure to the chest, liver disease, estrogen treatment, physical activity and obesity.

Despite the fact that breast cancer is rarer in men than women, a higher percentage of men die from the disease. It was once thought that breast cancer is more aggressive in men however, because diagnosis occurs later (as fewer men and their doctors are looking for breast cancer), the odds of survival decrease. Per stage, the survival rates are the same for women and men.

Min Fa said women, men and family members can help spread the word about the importance of breast self-exams for early detection. She said the "Pass the Word" program, part of the National Breast Cancer Awareness Month campaign, stresses the importance of sharing information about breast health and the early detection of breast cancer. The program stresses early detection; mammography screening as the single most effective method of early detection with an annual mammogram recommended for women over age 40; women and men should know how their breasts feel normally and report any breast change promptly to their health-care provider; breast care should involve breast self-examinations starting at the age of 20, clinical breast examinations every three years for women in their 20s and 30s, and clinical breast examinations every year for women 40 and older.

The National Breast Cancer Awareness Month Web site, http://www.nbcam.org/ online, has personalized electronic greeting cards and template electronic mail messages to remind loved ones that early detection saves lives and encourage them to schedule an annual mammogram.

For more information, contact Min Fa at 5-0520 or write to dianemf@lanl.gov by electronic mail or go to the American Cancer Society Web site at http://www.cancer.org/docroot/home/index.asp online.

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