The rate of bone loss for women increases after menopause when a woman's body produces less estrogen. Because osteoporosis has no symptoms while it is developing, a woman may not know she has it until she fractures a bone. A woman's lifetime risk of having a hip fracture is equal to her combined risk for breast, uterine and ovarian cancer. About 10 percent of African-American women over the age of 50 are affected. Up to 50 percent of women who survive a hip fracture lose their independence.
Osteoporosis can lead to loss of height and deformity.
Annual bone loss averages one percent after menopause and as much as five percent annually during early postmenopausal years. According to the American Cancer Society, about 77 percent of women with breast cancer are over age 50 at the time of diagnosis. While family history increases the risk, recent studies show only five to ten percent are hereditary cancers. Breast cancer is also the most common form of cancer found in African-American women, who have a lower incidence than other women, but are more likely to die of the disease. Early detection and prompt treatment of breast cancer are the keys to saving lives.