October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

According to the American Cancer Society, one in eight women in the U.S. will develop breast cancer in their lifetime.

Dr. Cecilia Stroede is an Aspirus Health Breast Surgeon. She said some patients are at higher risk than others.

“We would like to see the cancers that we see to be screen-detected,” she said. “And for that to happen, we need women to have the screening that is appropriate for them at their particular level of risk.” 

Family history, genetics, and other health factors can increase your chances of developing breast cancer.

Stroede said, while family history is an important part of identifying risk factors, it’s a small part. 

“Most patients who get cancer, breast cancer, don’t have an actual family history of breast cancer in close relatives,” she said.

Stroede also said patients who have received treatment for other cancers also have a high risk of developing breast cancer. 

“Women who have high-risk breast biopsies with atypical findings, women who have had chest wall radiation as part of cancer treatment at a younger age, before 30,” she said. “There are some other things as well, but those are the big ones.”

Breast tissue density can also increase your risk. Stroede said denser breast tissue requires more detailed scans.

“For women who have really extremely dense breasts, and that is an official term, extremely dense breasts, MRI imaging is going to be a much better way to screen,” Stroede said.

Stroede says even women who have had mammograms that appeared normal need to have a clinical breast exam in case they do need a biopsy. 

Stroede recommends women get their mammograms and disclose any changes that they have noticed in their breasts to their healthcare provider.

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