KAFE cares about our community…AND YOU! October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month! Early detection is SO IMPORTANT when it comes to breast cancer. From early detection to lowering your risks, get important facts and details to keep yourself healthy.
Run 31 with KAFE 104.1
Patrice from KAFE This Morning with Dave, Allan & Patrice has committed to running 1 mile EVERY DAY in October in honor of someone that has fought breast cancer! She’ll be sharing a different story every weekday morning at 8:45am!
You can join in, too. Sign up to walk, run, scoot, crawl, or wheel one mile every day in honor of someone that has had breast cancer. Or, share a story of your experience, or a loved one’s, with breast cancer.
Startling Statistics
Statistics below are found at the National Breast Cancer Foundation website.
- About 1 in 8 U.S. women (about 13%) will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of her lifetime. The lifetime risk of a man developing breast cancer is 1 in 726.
- Hundreds of thousands of people are diagnosed with breast cancer every year, and there are over 4 million breast cancer survivors in the United States.
- This year, an estimated 382,640 new cases of invasive breast cancer are expected to be diagnosed in women in the U.S.
- An estimated 168,000 breast cancer survivors in the U.S. are living with Stage 4 malignant breast cancer.
- An estimated 42,140 women in the U.S. will die from breast cancer in 2026.
- With the exception of skin cancers, breast cancer is the most common form of cancer in women in the United States.
- IIt is estimated that approximately 30% of all new cancer diagnoses in women will be breast cancer.
- On average, a new case of breast cancer is diagnosed in a woman every 2 minutes.
- Approximately 66% of breast cancer cases are diagnosed at a localized stage…BEFORE the cancer has spread throughout the body.
- The 5-year survival rate for breast cancer cases that are diagnosed at the localized stage is 99%!
- The 5-year relative survival rate in the U.S. for all types and stages of breast cancer combined is 92%.
- Approximately 10%-15% of women diagnosed have a family history of breast cancer. Those with a first-degree relative (mother, sister, daughter) with breast cancer are nearly twice as likely to develop breast cancer themselves.
- The average age for a woman diagnosed with breast cancer is 62 years old.
- Half of U.S. women that are diagnosed with breast cancer are 62 years old or younger.
- About 10% of breast cancer cases diagnosed in the United States are women under the age of 45 years old.
- The younger you are when diagnosed, particularly those under the age of 35, the higher the chances are of a recurrence.
- The most significant risk factors for breast cancer are sex (being a woman) and age (growing older).
- According to the PeaceHealth Cancer Center, in Whatcom County in 2022, 291 women received a diagnosis of breast cancer. Most of the women diagnosed were between the ages of 60-80. The youngest was 29 years old and the oldest was 98 years old. MOST of these were caught in stages 0 & 1 (the earliest stages). That tells us that early detection is working!
Breast Cancer Information
•From genetics, to age, here are tips on lowering breast cancer risks!
•What you can do to detect breast cancer early.
•Tips on how breast cancer is treated.
•Join a virtual support group and connect with others.
•Find the “can” in breast cancer survivor stories! Here, and here.
•From what it is, to what to wear and where to go! Tips for getting your mammogram!
•Does insurance cover a mammogram? Find out.
•The ACS definitive guide to research, treatment and inspirational breast cancer survivor stories!
•Have more questions? Check out these community discussions at BreastCancer.org.
KAFE’s Breast Cancer Awareness Month information is made possible by:
Bellingham Breast Center
2075 Barkley Boulevard, Suite 250, in Bellingham
Bellingham Breast Center is proud to be the first accredited breast center in Washington State.
North Cascade Cancer Center
381 W. Horton Road in Bellingham
Compassionate care, cutting-edge technology, and a commitment to your health. Visit NorthCascadeCancerCenter.com to learn more about their personalized approach to cancer care.
