But heart disease is not just a man's disease. Although they largely are not aware of it, women are affected by heart disease as much as men, even though it strikes females 10 years later in life. In women, the rate of death from heart disease far exceeds that of breast cancer. One woman in 25 dies of breast cancer. One in two dies of cardiovascular disease, including a heart attack or stroke.
Heart disease is the number-one killer of women.
In addition, a 1997 survey by Prevention magazine found that only 33 percent of women surveyed knew that their chance of dying from breast cancer is less than that from a heart attack. In fact, the risk is five times higher, but 58 percent thought it was lower or the same risk. But heart disease does not just develop overnight in men or women. It is a disease that takes years to develop, according to researchers. Changes in the body that eventually lead to heart disease begin in childhood and progress slowly as people age.