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Understanding Breast Cancer
Breast cancer is a disease in which malignant (cancer) cells form in the tissues of the breast. Cancer is a broad term for a class of diseases characterized by abnormal cells that grow and invade healthy cells in the body. Breast cancer starts in the cells of the breast as a group of cancer cells that can then invade surrounding tissues or spread (metastasize) to other areas of the body.
What Causes Cancer To Develop?
Cancer begins in the cells which are the basic building blocks that make up tissue. Tissue is found in the breast and other parts of the body. Sometimes, the process of cell growth goes wrong and new cells form when the body doesn’t need them and old or damaged cells do not die as they should. When this occurs, a build up of cells often forms a mass of tissue called a lump, growth, or tumor.
Breast cancer occurs when malignant tumors develop in the breast. These cells can spread by breaking away from the original tumor and entering blood vessels or lymph vessels, which branch into tissues throughout the body. When cancer cells travel to other parts of the body and begin damaging other tissues and organs, the process is called metastasis.
Facts About Breast Cancer In The United States
- In 2019, an estimated 268,600 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in women in the U.S. as well as 62,930 new cases of non-invasive (in situ) breast cancer.
- 62% of breast cancer cases are diagnosed at a localized stage, for which the 5-year survival rate is 99%.
- This year, an estimated 41,760 women will die from breast cancer in the U.S.
- Although rare, men get breast cancer too. The lifetime risk for U.S. men is about 1 in 1,000.
- An estimated 2,670 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year in the United States and approximately 500 will die.
- 1 in 8 women in the United States will develop breast cancer in her lifetime.
- Breast cancer is the most common cancer in American women, except for skin cancers.
- There are over 3.5 million breast cancer survivors in the United States.
- On average, every 2 minutes a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer in the United States.
- Female breast cancer represents 15.2% of all new cancer cases in the U.S.