Doctors are not really sure what causes breast cancer. We know that most women who get breast cancer do not have any identifiable risk factors. Dr. Axelrod adds that only 5 percent of women who get breast cancer have a family history of it a close relative who had the disease. Avoiding dietary fat and alcohol, and early childbearing can reduce our risk. The incidence in Japan, in which we have very good data is almost a third of that of the United States.
Japan is certainly the lowest.
Sweden, the US, Italy, the Netherlands, the UK are some of the highest. The incidence of breast cancer is relatively low in the developing countries, but because they have a larger share of the population, they have half of the world s breast cancer load. While women should see their doctor to check out any suspicious lump on their breasts, Dr. Veach says they should not panic if they find one. Benign causes of breast masses are by far the most common. So if you find a mass it is not absolutely certain that you have breast cancer.