Denser your Breast, Greater your Risk of Breast Cancer

Family History of Dense Breasts can Affect you Too!

Breasts are composed of glandular (milk glands and ducts), connective (fibrous tissue) and fat tissues. Breast density is calculated by comparing the amount of breast tissue in comparison to fat in the breast. Generally, dense breasts are composed of higher amounts of glandular and connective tissues and lower amounts of fatty breast tissue.
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Age-related Density
Physical examination or observation (size, shape, firmness, BMI or weight) cannot tell you about breast density and the only way to measure it is by using a mammogram. Age is a determining factor in breast density-younger we are, denser our breast is. As we grow old density decreases owing to declining estrogen levels which happens due to aging, all the more due to menopause.

It’s also common to see individuals having dense breasts later in their adulthood too (almost 40% women above the age of 40 have dense breasts). It might be due to your genetic predisposition! There are two reasons to be concerned about if you have a dense breast:

1. It puts you at a higher risk of breast cancer, almost 4-6 times likelier. A study published in the journal ‘Cancer’ tells that women with dense breast who have breast cancer in one breast are likelier to develop breast cancer in the opposite breast too.
2. Diagnosing breast cancer on a mammogram too is harder as nonfatty tissues and cancer both appear white on a mammogram. They are missed almost 50% times. It is better to inform your physician if you have a family history of breast cancer. Then, the doctor might recommend for additional screening tests such as ultrasound or breast MRI.
   
   

Risk Factors
Having dense breasts is nothing to be afraid of nor is it uncommon. It doesn’t guarantee a breast cancer in the future but only increases the risk of a cancer possibility. Important risk factors for a dense breast include age, medication, low BMI and genetics.

Younger women have denser breast. Older a woman grows, less-denser her breasts become, and it might be due to medications such as hormone replacement therapy after menopause that increase breast density or the work of other medications as well. Genetics too plays a role here and women with dense breasts usually have a mom or grandma with a dense breast.

Categorization
The BI-RADS (Breast Imaging Reporting & Database Systems) assess breast density and classifies it into four groups:

1. Most fatty: They are comprised of mostly fatty tissues with little of fibrous or glandular tissues. The mammogram here shows anything that is abnormal
2. Scattered density: There is abundant fat tissues with few areas of fibrous and glandular tissues
3. Consistent density: The breasts comprise of more of fibrous and glandular tissues that are evenly present across the breast. This makes it hard for the small masses to make themselves conspicuous in the breast
4. Extremely dense: There are abundant fibrous and glandular tissues which makes it difficult for a mammogram to pick out cancer as the cancer can blend with a normal tissue
   
   

The fatty breast tissue appears dark on an X-ray and cancerous lesions appear white. The tricky thing here is that very dense breast tissues too appear white on the X-ray resembling cancer lesions and making it difficult for a diagnosis. Also, the doctor might diagnose it as cancer due to white color but later find it to be an area of increased breast density.

Staying Healthy with Dense Breasts
Getting a dense breast is not in our hands but all we can do is engage in activities that reduce our risk for breast cancer. Common lifestyle changes that can be implemented include:

• Staying on a healthy weight
• Doing physical activity daily
• Refraining from smoking
• Limiting alcohol intake
• Eating nutritious food. Get in touch with reputed dietitians and nutritionists at www.firsteatright.com to get a personalized diet plan suiting your body type.
  
  

Besides these lifestyle changes the physician might recommend additional screening for women with denser breasts. Recommendations include a monthly self-breast examination, a yearly breast examination by the doctor and a yearly mammogram since the age of 40.

It is better to compare results with the previous year’s results to better understand your risk. Women with a family history of breast cancer or dense breasts must talk to their physician and arrange for specialized programs that meets the requirements.