Probably everyone has heard about this disease but certainly not many know how frequent it appears. In most cases, breast cancer is a fatal disease not because the lack of a efficient treatment or of detection methods, but because many women say: “It can not happen to me!” , “I’m not so unlucky!”. That is the problem! Women avoid examination. Probably is believed to be a shameful thing, one thing you must avoid. You really have to give up on these “opinions” and must think about you because this disease is more than reality.

But how many people die and how many are diagnosed each year?

As I said above, breast cancer is the most frequent type of cancer on women, and its incidence is increasing. Every year there are diagnosed 250.000 new cases in Europe and about 211.000 in United States of America; death rate is about 165.000 in Europe and 44.000 in United States of America each year.



So, people die from breast cancer each year. Unfortunately, all over the globe, more then 700.000 women are dieing each year and 8-9% women will develop breast cancer during life.

If it is diagnosed early, before spreading in the body, women with breast cancer have a survival rate at 5 years in 95% cases. Still, despite diagnostic advances and treatment, breast cancer is the main cause of death on women and the third cause of death in Europe and United States of America. After primary treatment, about 50% of the patients will develop metastasis cancer (advanced); since diagnosis, the average survival is between 18 – 30 months.

Let’s remember the most important aspects:

-         Every two minutes a women is diagnosed with breast cancer

-         this year are expected to appear 211.000 new cases of breast cancer in the USA.

-         One of eight women who reaches 85 years is developing breast cancer during life.

-         It is the main cause of death on women aged between 40 and 55 years.

-         70% of the cases are discovered through tests of self-examination Not all swelling of the breast can be detected by palpation. It is recommended to make regularly mammography or self-examination.

-         Statistics show that this type of cancer at children occurs at a rate of 0.1% and it is less aggressive then in an adults case. Those affected by this disease have a genetic predisposition in this direction. ( the youngest person in United States suffering from breast cancer is a 10 year-old girl named Hannah Powell-Auslum from California).



-         Two of ten swellings found in the breast are cancerous. If you find them, don’t panic and consult a doctor.

-         Some of the early signs of this disease are: swellings (already been spoken) which usually are unique, hard and often painless, superficial veins which are more prominent, mammary papilla changes its skin texture, etc.

-         Mammography is an radiography with low concentrations of X-ray, that can detect breast cancer with 2 years before the tumor to be felt on palpation.

-         If discovered in time, survival chance is 96%. These are excellent news; in the United States, over 2 million breast cancer survivors are still alive today.

-         Women who had an ill person with breast cancer in their family, present a greater risk of developing it; still, the most women diagnosed had no previous case in their family.