Also, although the death rate from heart disease has declined in men, it has not dropped in women. This is because heart disease is still being diagnosed more promptly and treated more aggressively when it occurs in men. Lung cancer is the leading cancer killer of older women, not breast cancer. While the death rate from breast cancer has remained relatively stable, lung cancer in women has skyrocketed because of smoking. If you smoke, your risk of lung cancer is 10 times that of a non-smoker.
Stroke is another overlooked disease in women, even among doctors.
The majority of strokes occur in women and that rate is increasing. Women are less prone to stroke when they are younger, but, as we age, our rate of stroke catches up. An agenda for women's health A Gallup survey revealed that although heart disease is the biggest killer of American women, doctors too often do not recognize this fact. The survey results underscore the need for more information, not only for women, but for their doctors as well. One-third of the doctors did not know this either.