Disease Database Drug Database Alt. Each year, more than 17,000 Canadian women will develop breast cancer.
Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer in women.
It rarely affects men. Because it tends to occur earlier in life than other cancers and than major causes of death, such as heart attacks and strokes, it has been shown to be the greatest cause of years of life lost by Canadian women. As breasts are designed to produce milk, they are classed as glandular or secreting organs. In childhood they are small, in females they enlarge when sexual maturity occurs. Over most of the body there is a small amount of fat between the surface skin and the underlying muscles.