A reminder to all young women that no one is immune to breast cancer.
There's a whole website devoted to young women who've battled and survived breast cancer: www.youngsurvival.org.
Here's a little information from that site:
Over 11,100 young women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in the next year. But, despite the fact that breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in women ages 15 to 54: Many young women and their doctors are unaware that they are at risk for breast cancer. There is no effective breast cancer screening tool for women 40 and under. Young women are often diagnosed at a later stage than their older counterparts. There is very little research or educational material focused on issues unique to this younger population, such as fertility, pregnancy, genetic predisposition, the impact of hormonal status on the effectiveness of treatment, psycho-social and long-term survivorship issues, and higher mortality rates for young women, particularly for African-Americans and Latinas. Young women diagnosed with breast cancer often feel isolated and have little contact with peers who can relate to what they are experiencing. As the incidence of young women with breast cancer is much lower than in older women, young women are underrepresented in many research studies.
The young survival coalition wants young women to educate themselves about breast cancer and be proactive about their health.
A message we should all be hearing.
