Top 5 Myths About Breast Cancer
MYTH: Breast cancer is a death sentence.
FACT: The survival for breast cancer now is almost 85%. The survival for early stage breast cancer approaches 90%. Breast cancer mortality (the chance of dying) has been decreasing by almost 2% per year since the early 1990s. As of January 2006 there are over 2.5 million women living with a history of breast cancer.
MYTH: Breast cancer means the loss of your breast.
FACT: Over 50% of early stage breast cancer patients are eligible to have Lumpectomy as the surgical treatment for breast cancer.
MYTH: Everyone treated for breast cancer will need chemotherapy.
FACT: The need for chemotherapy is determined by your age, your stage and other individual factors seen in your tumor. A breast cancer diagnosis does not automatically mean chemotherapy is needed.
MYTH: Breast cancer cannot happen to me because I have no family history.
FACT: 75% of the cancers we diagnose are in women with no family history.
MYTH: My mammogram is normal, I cannot have breast cancer.
FACT: Mammograms will miss 10-15% of breast cancers and a higher percentage in women with dense breasts. Anyone with a palpable mass and normal mammogram should still be referred to a breast specialist for further evaluation.
