The incidence of breast cancer has been rising for the past two decades, while mortality has remained relatively stable since the 1950s. Much of the increase in incidence over the past 15 years is associated with increased screening by physical examination and mammography. However, screening alone does not seem to explain all of this increase.
Breast cancer occurs among both women and men, but is quite rare among men.
Since the incidence rates among men are so low, there are too few cases to explore ethnic diversity. This description is limited to breast cancer among women. The age-adjusted incidence of invasive breast cancer reveals that white, Hawaiian, and black women have the highest rates in the SEER regions. The lowest rates occur among Korean, American Indian, and Vietnamese women. White non-Hispanic women have the highest rates, over twice the rate for Hispanic women.