Facts: Breast Cancer | Cervical Cancer | Mortality Rates | Dictionary Terms
Breast Cancer
Breast cancer is the number one cancer diagnosis in women and second leading cause of cancer deaths, after lung cancer. It can develop in men however, approximately 99% of breast cancer deaths occur among women. A woman’s best chances of breast cancer survival are early detection through regular screening mammograms and clinical breast exams.
According to the American Cancer Society’s Cancer Facts & Figures, an estimated 230,480 new female breast cancer cases will be diagnosed in the year 2011. An estimated 39,520 deaths would occur in the same year due to breast cancer. In Arkansas, an estimated 2,100 women will be newly diagnosed with breast cancer and 440 will die of the disease in 2011.
According to the 2003-2007 data, African American women have approximately 45 percent higher death rate from breast cancer than Caucasian women, despite the fact that Caucasian women are diagnosed more often with breast cancer than African American women.
Risk Factors for Breast Cancer Include
- Increasing age: As women get older their risk of developing breast cancer increases.
- Family history of breast cancer: Women whose relatives have had breast cancer (especially at an early age) are more likely to get breast cancer.
- Breast cancer genes: About 5-10% of breast cancers are believed to be inherited.
- Personal history of breast cancer: A woman who has had cancer in one breast is more likely to develop it in the other breast or in the remaining breast tissue.
- History of breast disease: Women who have a history of certain types of non-cancerous tumors and cysts in their breasts are more likely to develop breast cancer.
- Hormonal factors: Women who start their periods at a young age, start menopause at a late age, have their first child later in life, and have no full-term pregnancies may have an increased risk of developing breast cancer.
Cervical Cancer
Screening women using the Papanicolaou (Pap) test can prevent cervical cancer from developing most of the time by finding and removing lesions at an early stage before they become cancer. Despite that, the American Cancer Society estimates 12,710 new cases of cervical cancer to be diagnosed and 4,290 deaths to occur due to the disease in the U.S in 2011.
In 2007, Arkansas ranked third in the nation after Mississippi and West Virginia, for cervical cancer mortality rate. The cervical cancer mortality rate for black women is about twice as high compared to the rates among white women. It is estimated that, 130 new cervical cancers will be diagnosed in Arkansas in 2011.
Risk Factors for Cervical Cancer Include:
- Sexual behavior: cervical cancer is closely linked to sexually transmitted infections with certain types of human papilloma virus (HPV)
- Sex at early age
- Multiple sexual partners or sex with persons who have had several partners
- Cigarette smoking
2003-2007
| Age-Adjusted Female Breast and Cervical Cancer Mortality Rates* by Race: Arkansas and United States |
| |
Breast
|
Cervical
|
| |
Arkansas |
U.S. |
Arkansas |
U.S. |
| All Races |
24.5 |
25.1 |
3.6 |
2.5 |
| White |
23.3 |
24.5 |
3.2 |
2.3 |
| Black |
33.7 |
33.5 |
6.8 |
4.7 |
*Rates are expressed as cases per 100,000. Age-Adjusted to 2000 US Standard Population.
Sources: 2003-2007 AR Center for Health Statistics, Online Query System; http://www.cancer-rates.info/
2003-2007 CDC WONDER On-line Database; http://wonder.cdc.gov/
2001-2005
| Age-Adjusted Female Breast and Cervical Cancer Mortality Rates* by Race: Arkansas and United States |
| |
Breast
|
Cervical
|
| |
Arkansas |
U.S. |
Arkansas |
U.S. |
| All Races |
24.5 |
25.1 |
3.6 |
2.5 |
| White |
23.3 |
24.5 |
3.2 |
2.3 |
| Black |
33.7 |
33.5 |
6.8 |
4.7 |
*Rates are expressed as cases per 100,000. Age-Adjusted to 2000 US Standard Population.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Compressed Mortality File 1999-2005. CDC WONDER On-line Database, compiled from Compressed Mortality File 1999-2005 Series 20 No. 2K, 2008.