BREAST CANCER
And what are we going to do about it? Read on!
Written By Anna M. Cabeca, DO, FACOG, ABAARM

With so much news about breast cancer and the ever present danger of having it, getting it, and knowing someone we love and care about with it, we all do our breast exams, and keep up with our mammograms, and remind a buddy, Right? I WISH!
Truth be told, less than 10 of us actually keep up with our own health, let alone anyone else's. Possibly, we think that if I don't think about sickness, cancer, disease, health, then I am not going to get sick, it is not going to happen to me, or I'll just ignore it and it will go away. But we are wrong again. With this article, I hope to persuade a few more percent to be proactive in not only our own health but those of our families, friends, neighbors, pets, etc. Get the point?
First, to bring this home to us and further understand our own risks, let us review risk factors for developing breast cancer.
•Prior breast cancer. If you have ever had it, please keep up with your examinations. Also having had a breast biopsy that showed "lobular carcinoma in situ" and "atypical ductal hyperplasia" puts you at higher risk.
•Genetics and Family history : The lifetime risk of being diagnosed with invasive breast cancer is about one in eight for women, but is about two to three times greater for women with a history of breast cancer in a first-degree relative (mother, sister, or daughter) than in women with no family history of breast (or ovarian) cancer. Only 9 of breast cancer can be attributed to a "family history" of breast cancer and fewer associated with a hereditary gene or germ cell mutation, i.e. the BRCA1 and BRCA2. There is a higher association between breast, ovarian, and colon cancers. Therefore your personal risk is increased by:
•having a mother, sister, or daughter with breast cancer
•having multiple generations of family members affected by breast or ovarian cancer,
•having relatives who were diagnosed with breast cancer at a young age (under 50 years old),
•having relatives who had both breasts affected by cancer.
•Environmental Factors : 90% of breast cancers are attributed to various environmental factors such as:
•Exposure to ionizing radiation
•Exposure to DDT and contaminants of pesticides
•Smoking and second hand smoke
•Obesity, especially adult weight gain
•High fat diets
•Alcohol use
•Older age of first child's birth and never having a child
•Later menopause
•Also, the risk of prolonged hormone replacement therapy in menopausal women on Premarin and Provera has been shown to increase the risk by 8 per 10,000 women.
We can come to grasp our individual risk as 1 in 8 women in my lifetime. So, let's now talk about PREVENTION, DETECTION, and DIAGNOSES of breast cancer.
PREVENTION: The best medicine and best doctor is able to prevent disease. Here is what we know about breast cancer prevention. It begins with strengthening your immune system. Follow this advice and you will not only help to reduce your risk of breast cancer but hopefully prevent it and many other illnesses, too.
•If you smoke - QUIT!! – I often tell my patients, if I could think of one good thing about smoking I would tell them, but I can not. NO! NO! NO! QUIT!
•Exercise 30 minutes 5 days per week.
•Drink plenty of water, good old H2O! 8 to 10 glasses per day to keep our body fluid and flush toxins
•Eat your vegetables!!! Squash, carrots, tomatoes. These contain carrotenoids that fight disease.
•Eat Salmon, olive oil, lean meats, don't fry. Foods in their natural form have many "anti-oxidants" that help our body fight off "free radicals" that promote disease.
•Supplement your diet:
•Broccoli Seed Extract (Oncoplex ES)
•Alkalizing antioxidant greens formula (Mighty Maca Greens)
•Black Current Oil (GLA)
•CoQ10
•Stop drinking alcohol or limit to 4 oz of red wine per night (begun after you begin your meal).
•Avoid foods that may have stored hormones or pesticides.
•Shed those extra pounds and work hard to keep them off and maintain your goal weight.
•BE MINDFUL! Our bodies are given a special power to heal and take the opportunity each day to invoke that. Some ways that you can do this is:
•Prayer
•Meditation
•Yoga
•Laughter
•Talking
•Sharing
•Loving
Anything that you can do to enhance your joy of life and relieve your stress to give back your body its maximum power to heal itself.

*Dr. Anna Cabeca is a board certified Gynecologist and Obstetrician, as well as board certified in Anti-Aging and Regenerative Medicine, an expert in Functional Medicine, and an expert in women's health. She specializes in bio-identical hormone replacement therapy and natural alternatives, successful menopause, age management medicine, reproductive health, and helping patients prepare for pregnancy and combat infertility issues. Dr. Cabeca practices in Brunswick, Georgia.