Now is the time to stop feeling guilty about your breast cancer. You didn't cause it yourself.
A recent report released by the Breast Cancer Fund (www.breastcancerfund.org) says that even with the genetic factors and commonly accepted risk factors eliminated, women in the United States still have a high risk of breast cancer. This report which is called "State of the Evidence 2006: What Is the Connection Between the Environment and Breast Cancer?" reports that as many as 50 percent of breast cancer cases remain unexplained by either genetics or lifestyle factors, such as a woman's age at her first full-term pregnancy or alcohol consumption.
The report goes on, "compelling scientific evidence points to some of the 100,000 synthetic chemicals in use today as contributing to the development of breast cancer, either by altering hormone function or gene expression." The report also identifies radiation exposure, such as that from X-rays and CT scans, as the "longest-established environmental cause of breast cancer."
"State of the Evidence 2006," which reviews and analyzes nearly 350 scientific studies on environmental links to breast cancer, was jointly published by two San Francisco-based organizations, the Breast Cancer Fund and Breast Cancer Action. The report was peer-reviewed by leading scientists at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, Tufts University School of Medicine, Columbia University and other research institutions.
This is the fourth edition of "State of the Evidence" and the 2006 edition reports findings from more than 46 new studies published during 2004 and 2005.. |
