Majority unaware of breast cancer age link
Reported September 21, 2007
Three fifths of women do not realise that their risk of developing breast cancer increases with age, a survey by Breast Cancer Care has revealed.
Age is in fact one of the strongest risk factors for the disease, but experts believe that highly-publicised cases of breast cancer among celebrities such as Kylie Minogue have distorted people’s perceptions of the disease.
The poll of more than 1,000 adult females generated concerning figures, particularly among women aged 70 and over, 55 per cent of whom did not know that they had a higher risk of breast cancer.
Thirty per cent of over-70s wrongly claimed that it was not necessary to check their breasts for signs of the disease ‘at their age’ and only a quarter had bothered to request breast screening.
Christine Fogg, joint chief executive of Breast Cancer Care, said that the link between increasing age and breast cancer risk is well established, yet ‘the message is failing to reach the majority’.
‘It’s extremely alarming that most women over 70 do not take up breast screening, as this increases the likelihood that any breast cancer they may develop is found at a later stage, which could limit options and reduce the success of any treatment,’ she pointed out.