Breast Cancer Awareness Month: Who Gets Breast Cancer And Who Will Survive It?

Breast cancer is caused when cells in the breast begin to divide and grow in an abnormal way. It is caused by a combination of lots of different factors, and many of them are beyond our control. Breast cancer is not just one single disease - there are several types of breast cancer. It can be diagnosed at different stages and can grow at different levels. This means that people can have different treatments, depending on what will work best for them.

Also read: 5 Common Myths About Breast Cancer

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in the U.K. Like any other cancer finding breast cancer as early as possible helps you give a better chance of successful treatment.

This Breast Cancer Awareness Month, know the common signs and symptoms of breast cancer may include:

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• A normal change in size and shape of the breast.
• Formation of a new lump or mass.
• Constant pain in your breast or armpit.
• Nipple retraction.
• Redness or rash around the skin or on the nipple.
• Nipple discharge.
• Change in the color of the breast. For instance, the breast may appear red.
• Sore or inverted nipple.
• A hard lump with irregular edges is more likely to be cancerous.

Some causes of breast cancer might be as follows:

• breast infection
• fibrocystic breast disease ("lumpy breasts")
• fibroadenoma (noncancerous tumor)
• fat necrosis (damaged tissue)

More people survive breast cancer than ever. However, survival depends on many different factors. It depends on your individual condition, type of cancer, treatment and level of fitness. So no one can tell you exactly how long you will survive.

Also read: Breast Cancer: Signs & Symptoms and Treatment

Though breast cancer might not be prevented, earlier detection, increased knowledge and understanding of the biology of breast cancer and better treatments mean that survival rates after the diagnosis of breast cancer are improving.

Around 87% of the women survive breast cancer beyond five years. Around 78% of women survive beyond 10 years. It is also thought that around 691,000 people are alive in the UK who has had a diagnosis of breast cancer earlier. However, around 11,400 people die from breast cancer every year.