The Breast Cancer Landscape (((((Breast Cancer Incidence ))))) Breast cancer is a global problem. #Worldwide, breast cancer accounts for nearly a quarter of all cancers in #women. In 2012, there were 1.7 million women #diagnosed with the disease. 1 In the #UnitedStates, in 2014, it is estimated that more than 232,670 women and 2,360 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer. 2 The chance of a woman being diagnosed with breast cancer during her lifetime has increased from about 1 in 11 in 1975 to 1 in 8 today. 3 The number of women being diagnosed continues to #increase as the number of women in age groups at risk of breast cancer increases, e.g., the “#babyboomers.” However, the proportion of the population affected by the #disease remains relatively constant. Recently, researchers at the National Cancer Institute (#nci) projected that the overall breast cancer incidence rate will stay the same through #2016! 4 The median age at diagnosis is 61.3 because of increased screening beginning in 1980, there has been a dramatic increase in the incidence of ductal #carcinoma in situ (DCIS), #abnormal cells contained within the milk ducts that have not spread to other parts of the body. Most DCIS will never become invasive cancer. It is currently not possible to distinguish the #DCIS that will develop into #cancer from the harmless type; as a result, many women are treated with redundant interventions that are associated with potential short-term and long-term #morbidities. (((((Breast Cancer #Deaths ))))) In 2012 there were 522,000 deaths globally. 1 In the United States, in #2014, it is estimated that 40,000 women and 430 men will die of #breastcancer. 2 In 2035, with no major changes in prevention or treatment, it is estimated that 846,241 women will die from breast cancer #worldwide. 6 Women do not die of breast cancer confined to the breast or draining lymph nodes. Most breast cancer deaths are due to the spread of the disease to other parts of the body, and its consequence on impairing the function of #vital organs like lung, liver, and brain. *As depicted in Figure 1 below, the rate of #metastatic breast cancer at initial diagnosis in the United States has not changed since 1975! {No Change in Metastatic (Distant Stage) Cancer at Initial Diagnosis Figure 1. Female Breast Cancer Incidence Rates* by Stage**, US, 1975-2007 *Rates are age-adjusted to the 2000 US standard population. **Localized – confined to primary site in breast; regional – spread to regional lymph nodes; distant – cancer has metastasized. Data Source: Surveillance, #Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program. #SEER 9 Registries, 1973-2007, National Cancer Institute, DDCPS, Surveillance #Research Program, Cancer #Statistics Branch, released April 2010, based on the November 2009 submission.} (((((#Recurrence and Metastatic Disease))))) We still do not know how to prevent recurrence and metastasis for any individual woman. An estimated 20% to 30% of women diagnosed with invasive breast cancer will have a recurrence and may eventually die of their disease. 9 An estimated 90% of deaths due to breast cancer are a consequence of metastatic disease, whether the cancer was metastatic at diagnosis or a metastatic recurrence that developed later. It has been estimated that approximately 155,000 women are living with metastatic breast cancer in the United States, and this estimate was projected to rise to 162,000 by the end of 2011, according to one expert. 10 The exact numbers are not known; neither is information available on historical trends. While researchers have identified treatments that sometimes shrink or slow metastatic tumors, such as #estrogen blockers, #radiation, and #chemotherapy, they are most often temporary. Treatments to permanently eradicate metastasis do not exist. There is no cure once metastatic disease has occurred. Median survival with metastatic breast cancer is 3 years, and there has been no statistically significant change in over 20 years. 11 Recent estimates are that, with current historical trends, median survival will increase by 6 months by the year 2021. 12 While the #risk of recurrence is greater in the first 5 years after a diagnosis of estrogen receptor (ER)-negative breast cancer, patients with ER-positive tumors have a consistent long-term risk of death from breast cancer and a greater risk after 7 years. Approximately 75% of breast cancer is ER-positive, and most breast cancer deaths occur in ER-positive women. Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program, September 2014 #bcsm ##cdmrp #bcrp #iloveboobies #iamenough
Posted on: Mon, 06 Oct 2014 23:53:11 +0000
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