Welcome to October! We are now in what is one of my favorite months... weather cooling off, leaves falling, and pumpkin spice filling the air. Hello autumn!
October is one of my favorite months for another reason too... Most all of us know someone, a mother, aunt, sister, or friend, who has battled breast cancer. You may even be battling it right now. Breast cancer is a disease that reaches many of us on a personal level and we have a special interest in fighting this disease, which is why our agency celebrates Breast Cancer Awareness Month during October each year. It is a cause very close to our hearts, and each October we have an extra chance to celebrate recovery and promote awareness for this disease.
Breast cancer awareness is an effort to raise awareness of breast cancer and reduce the disease's stigma by educating people about its symptoms and treatment options. Supporters hope that greater knowledge will lead to earlier detection of breast cancer, which is associated with higher long-term survival rates, and that money raised for breast cancer will produce a reliable, permanent cure.
Here are some statistics about breast cancer:
- About 1 in 8 U.S. women will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of her lifetime.
- In 2013, an estimated 232,340 new cases of invasive breast cancer were expected to be diagnosed in women in the U.S., along with 64,640 new cases of non-invasive breast cancer.
- About 2,240 new cases of invasive breast cancer were expected to be diagnosed in men in 2013. A man's lifetime risk of breast cancer is about 1 in 1,000.
- About 39,620 women in the U.S. were expected to die in 2013 from breast cancer, though death rates have been decreasing since 1989 - with larger decreases in women under 50. These decreases are thought to be the result of treatment advances, earlier detection through screening, and increased awareness.
- For women in the U.S., breast cancer death rates are higher than those for any other cancer, besides lung cancer.
- Besides skin cancer, breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among American women. Just under 30% of cancers in women are breast cancers.
- In 2013, there were more than 2.8 million women with a history of breast cancer in the U.S. This includes women currently being treated and women who have finished treatment.
- A woman's risk of breast cancer approximately doubles if she has a first-degree relative (mother, sister, daughter) who has been diagnosed with breast cancer. About 15% of women who get breast cancer have a family member diagnosed with it.
- About 85% of breast cancers occur in women who have no family history of breast cancer. These occur due to genetic mutations that happen as a result of the aging process and life in general, rather than inherited mutations.
It is critically important that we support this cause and do what we can to raise awareness for breast cancer.
We can help you make sure you are fully covered, no matter what life may throw at you. Call our office today for more information about cancer insurance.