Can You Decrease Your Risk of Breast Cancer?

In this Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I thought it would be a good idea to talk about some ways that you (or your loved ones) might decrease your risk of breast cancer. Breast cancer has many risk factors and some of those are within our control. Today we will talk about the different risk factors for breast cancer and which ones you can control.

Non-modifiable risk factors are those that are completely out of your control. You cannot modify these risk factors by decisions that you make. Modifiable risk factors are those that you have some control over. You could potentially make some lifestyle changes to alter these risk factors. There are some that I think are somewhat in the middle, and we will talk about those too.

• Female sex – Although men can get breast cancer, it is rare (less than 1% of breast cancers).
• Older age – Although younger women can and do get breast, most breast cancers occur in women over 50.
• Family history – There is a higher risk with family history of breast or ovarian cancer.
• Genetic mutations – BRCA1 or BRCA2 are the two major ones but there are several.
• Race/ethnicity – Non-Hispanic white women have the highest incidence of breast cancer overall. However, non-Hispanic black women are generally diagnosed with breast cancer at a younger age, are more likely to have aggressive forms of breast cancer, and are more likely to die from breast cancer. Hispanic women have the lowest incidence of breast cancer.
• Menstrual period and menopause – Women who are younger when they have their first period, or older when they go through menopause are at higher risk.
• Density of breast tissue – Higher density means higher risk.
• Previous history of breast cancer or non-cancerous breast diseases
• Previous radiation therapy – Women who get radiation therapy before age 30 are at higher risk.

• Hormone replacement and certain other hormone medications – The risk varies depending on the medication used and the length of time it is taken.
• Physical activity – Regular physical activity reduces the risk significantly.
• Body weight – Women who are obese have a higher risk of breast cancer and their cancers are more likely to have more aggressive features. This is especially true for women who have been through menopause.
• Alcohol intake – Higher alcohol intake is associated with higher risk, even more so in women who consume more alcohol before their first pregnancy.
• Smoking – Both active smokers and those exposed to secondhand smoke have a higher risk. Longer exposure and exposure prior to the first pregnancy increase the risk even more.
• Low vitamin levels – Particularly low vitamin D level, appears to increase risk.
• Exposure to artificial light at night – Who knew? Artificial light at night has been recently linked to increased breast cancer risk.
• Dietary factors – Highly processed foods increase your risk of breast cancer as well as gastrointestinal cancers. A 10% increase of ultra-processed food in the diet is associated with an 11% increase in breast cancer risk. On the other hand, a diet high in vegetables, fruits, legumes, whole grains, and lean protein is associated with a lowered risk of breast cancer.
• Exposure to chemicals – Chronic exposure to chemicals increases risk. This needs further study as the list is likely pretty long. So far, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT)and polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) have the most data to show the risk. A potential risk was also seen with increased exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), synthetic fibers, organic solvents, oil mist, and insecticides.
• Other drugs – There are several other drugs that potentially increase the risk of breast cancer but need more study to show the amount of risk.