Fact vs. Fiction: The truth about breast cancer

Author: Ivanhoe Newswire
Published: Updated:
Breast cancer ribbon. (Credit: CBS)
Credit: CBS

October is breast cancer awareness month. Did you know breast cancer is the most common cancer among American women?

While there’s a lot of information out there about the disease, it’s not all true.

You’ve seen the pink ribbons and the catchy slogans, but how much do you really know about breast cancer?

While organizations do a good job of promoting awareness, there are a lot of myths out there.

For instance, some people think that only women can get breast cancer. Each year more than two thousand men will be diagnosed with breast cancer and more than 400 will die. Another fallacy: if you have breast cancer, you’ll always have a lump. The reality is breast cancer might not cause a lump, especially when it first develops.

Annual mammograms are a foolproof way to detect breast cancer early, again, not true!

Although they’re important tools, about 20 percent of breast cancers are missed on mammogram screenings.

Another myth is that deodorants, hair dyes, or underwire bras can cause breast cancer.

There’s no scientific evidence to support this link. Our last false claim: if you carry the BRCA gene mutation, you’re doomed to get breast cancer.

The truth is not everyone who carries BRCA mutations will develop cancer. Separating fact from fiction when it comes to breast cancer.

Another myth is that if you don’t have a family history, you won’t get breast cancer.

This is simply not true. In fact, most people diagnosed with breast cancer have no known family history. And only five to ten percent of breast cancers are believed to be hereditary

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