pathology and pathophysiology
certain factors appear to increase the risk of breast cancer.
being female, being older than 50 years of age,
and having a family history of breast cancer are the most common risk factor.
relatives of woman with breast cancer who carry a defective gene are very likely to develop breast cancer. additional factors include exposure to ionizing radiation in childhood or adolescence, previous breast cancer, a history of colon or endometrial cancer, chronic alcohol consumption, early menarche, late menopause, obesity, and having no children or having children after 30 year of age.
white woman are at higher risk for breast cancer than african american woman, but african american woman are more likely to die of it. most of the woman diagnosed with breast cancer have none of the identified risk of agefactors except being female or being older than 50 year.