f found early and treated before it spreads, the five-year survival rate for breast cancer is 98 percent for localized disease.

RISK FACTORS

	A family history of breast cancer (Risk increases with diagnoses in several close relatives or diagnoses before age 50.)
	A family history of ovarian cancer
	Genetic mutations (BRCA-1, BRCA-2 or others)
	Increasing age, with most breast cancer diagnosed in women over 40
	Menstrual periods before age 12 or menopause after age 55
	Obesity or sedentary lifestyle
	Hormone replacement therapy with estrogen and progesterone
	Exposure of breasts to previous radiation therapy
	Previous breast cancer in one breast

	If you drink alcohol, limit consumption to one drink a day for a woman and two drinks a day for a man.
	Be physically active and exercise regularly.
	Maintain a healthy body weight.
	If you have children, breastfeed them.
	By age 20, perform breast self-exam (BSE) once a month.
	In your 20s and 30s, have a clinical breast exam (CBE) by a health care professional every three years.
	Beginning at age 40, have an annual CBE.
	At age 40, begin annual screening mammography.
	If you are at high risk, talk to your health care professional about beginning to have screening mammograms at a younger age.
	If you are at very high risk, you may also have annual MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) exams.
	Ask your health care professional about other ways to reduce risk.
	If you have a family history of breast cancer, discuss genetic testing with a genetics counselor.

	A lump, mass or thickening in the breast
	A lump in the underarm area
	Change in the size or shape of a breast
	Nipple pain, tenderness or discharge, including bleeding
	Nipple turning inward or inverted
	Change in skin color and texture: dimpling, puckering or redness
	Breast that feels warm or swollen

	The most common treatment is surgery to remove the cancer itself (lumpectomy) combined with radiation. In about 20% of cases, removal of the breast (mastectomy) is needed.
	Other therapies—chemotherapy or hormone therapy—may be used alone or in combination before or after surgery.