MYTHS AND REALITIES ABOUT BREAST CANCER
Compiled by Breast Cancer Options from a variety of sources 
 
STATISTICS

Myth: Wearing underwire bras increase your risk of getting breast cancer.
Reality: Claims that underwire bras compress the lymphatic system, allowing toxins to accumulate and cause breast cancer, have been widely debunked as unscientific. The consensus is that neither the type of bra you wear nor the tightness of your underwear or other clothing has any connection to breast cancer risk.
 
Myth: Antiperspirants increase your risk of getting breast cancer.
Reality: We don't know.  Because of their weak estrogen-like properties, parabens - used as preservatives in some antiperspirants - are possibly carcinogenic. A 2004 study, found parabens in 18 of 20 samples of tissue from human breast tumors. However, this study did not prove that parabens cause breast tumors. More research is needed. In the meantime, as a precaution, many women choose to avoid parabens in any product that they use especially in the breast and armpit area.

Myth: Small-breasted women are less likely to get breast cancer.
Reality: There's no connection between the size of your breasts and your risk of getting breast cancer.  Recommendations for routine screenings and checkups are the same regardless of breast size.  

Myth: Women with lumpy breasts (fibrocystic breasts) have a higher risk of developing breast cancer.
Reality: No connection between fibrocystic breasts and breast cancer risk has been proven.  However, lumpy breasts, can make it trickier to differentiate normal tissue from cancerous tissue, so you may experience false alarms. Women with fibrocystic breasts often follow up mammograms with ultrasound examination.
 
Myth: Overweight women have the same breast cancer risk as other women.
Reality: Weight gain after the age of 18 is associated with a 45% increase in breast cancer risk and higher rates of breast cancer recurrence and mortality in both premenopausal and postmenopausal breast cancer patients.  WEIGHT GAIN AFFECTS SURVIVAL!. Being overweight or obese increases your breast cancer risk, especially if you are past menopause and/or you gained the weight later in life. 
 
SCREENING AND DIAGNOSIS

Myth: Monthly breast self exams (BSE) save lives.
Reality: There is no scientific evidence to support this claim. Actually, the studies that have been done show an increase in potential harm from monthly, regimented BSE including elevated anxiety, more frequent physician visits and unnecessary biopsies of benign lumps. But...you should know what normal is for your body.

Myth: Mammograms can only help and not harm you.  
Reality: Mammograms do not detect all breast cancers. False positive results may lead to unnecessary, intrusive surgical interventions, while false negative results will not find cancerous tumors. More than 80% of women who receive suspicious results from a screening mammogram do not have breast cancer. We also have NO long term studies of the results of constant exposure to mammography. On the other hand, we have no better tool for early diagnosis in most women.
 
Myth: If your mammogram is negative, there is nothing to worry about.
Reality: Mammograms fail to detect as much as 20% of breast cancer in women over 50, and as much as 40% in younger women. Younger women at increased risk should talk with their doctor about the benefits and limitations of starting mammograms when they are younger and/or using other technology or having more frequent exams.This is why clinical breast exams and knowing what is normal for your breast and body are also crucial pieces of the screening process.
 
Myth: MRI is better than mammography because it finds more cancer.
Reality: MRI does not work better than mammography. It works differently and, when used for screening, it yields more false positive results than mammography. There is no evidence that shows the use of MRI, even for women at high risk of developing breast cancer, saves lives.
 
Myth: Mammograms prevent breast cancer.
Reality: Mammography is a screening test to detect cancer already present in the breast. It does not prevent cancer, nor will it definitively detect the disease. Breast cancer awareness campaigns urge women to have annual mammograms so that breast cancer can be found early and "cured." Regardless of how small a tumor is when it is detected, some breast cancers are so aggressive that they cannot be effectively treated with the therapies that are currently available.
 
Myth: Most breast lumps are cancerous.
Reality: Roughly 80% of lumps in women's breasts are benign (noncancerous) changes, cysts, or other conditions, but report all lumps to your doctor.
 
Myth: Breast cancer always comes in the form of a lump.
Reality: A lump may indicate breast cancer (or one of many benign breast conditions), but women should also be on the alert for other kinds of changes that may be signs of cancer. These include swelling; skin irritation or dimpling; breast or nipple pain; nipple retraction (turning inward); redness, scaliness, or thickening of the nipple or breast skin; or a discharge other than breast milk. You should report any changes you notice in your breasts to your doctor.
 
TREATMENT AND SURVIVAL
 
Myth: It's very important to make treatment decisions immediately after being diagnosed with breast cancer.
Reality: What is most important is an informed decision.  Taking time to gather information is time well spent.  There is a lot to learn: first, the details of the diagnosis, then the treatment options, possible side effects and insurance issues.  Seeking a second opinion from a breast surgeon, radiation oncologist and medical oncologist can be extremely valuable. A pathology second opinion can help you be more certain that your diagnosis and disease characteristics are correct. This is very important, because doctors base their treatment advice on your pathology report as well as your surgical report.

Myth:  After I've survived five years, my breast cancer won't return.
Reality: Breast cancer can recur at any time, although it is more likely to happen within the first five to 10 years afer diagnosis and treatment: 75% of women who will get a recurrence see it within six years, and 25% recur within the 10 years after that.
 
Myth: Removing the entire breast (mastectomy) gives you a better chance of surviving cancer than having a lumpectomy with radiation therapy.
Reality: Survival rates are about the same for most women who have mastectomies as for women who choose the breast-conserving option of removal of the tumor followed by radiation treatments. However, there are some cases - such as with extensive DCIS disease, the presence of BRCA gene mutations, or particularly large tumors - when mastectomy is the safer option.
 
Myth: Breast cancer is preventable.
Reality: Although it is possible to identify risk factors (such as family history and inherited gene mutations) and make lifestyle changes that can lower your risk, roughly 70% of women diagnosed with breast cancer have no identifiable risk factors. The disease occurs mostly by chance for not-yet understood reasons. So-called "chemoprevention" drugs are given to healthy high-risk women to reduce their risk of developing breast cancer.  They do not prevent it and they have side effects, which may outweigh the benefits for some women.
 
Myth: Everyone's breast cancer is the same.
Reality: There are many sub-types of breast cancer and they require different types of treatment.  It's important to learn about these differences and know your own sub-type to make informed decisions about treatment.
 
Myth: If you're considered high risk, all you can do is watch for signs.
Reality: There's a lot that women can do to lower their risk, including losing weight if they're obese, getting regular exercise, lowering or eliminating alcohol consumption and quitting smoking.  Women should be rigorous about examining their own breasts, and having regular clinical exams and mammograms. Some high-risk women choose to have a mastectomy to decrease their risk by roughly 90%. Other proactive steps include having regular MRIs, exploring chemoprevention and participating in clinical trials. High-risk women's clinics and preventive-care programs are great places to get information.
  
HEREDITY
 
Myth: Most women with breast cancer have a family history of the disease.
Reality: 85 -90% of women who develop breast cancer do not have an affected mother, sister or daughter. Your risk does increase if you are in the 10-15% with a family history of breast cancer: If a first-degree relative (a parent, sibling, or child) has had or has breast cancer, your risk of developing the disease approximately doubles. Two first-degree relatives with the disease increases your risk more. (Your father's family history of breast cancer is just as important as your mother's.) However, most women with a family history of breast cancer will never get breast cancer.  The inherited mutations of the genes BRCA 1 and BRCA 2 are not always passed on. 

  
Myth: Everyone who has a positive BRCA 1 or BRCA 2 test result will get breast cancer.
Reality: A positive test result generally means that a person has inherited a known mutation in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene, which only indicates an increased risk of developing certain cancers. It cannot tell whether an individual will actually develop cancer or when.  Conversely, testing negative for the gene does not mean one will never develop breast cancer. For women who have inherited a harmful mutation in BRCA1 or BRCA2, the rate appears to be up to 5 times higher than for women without the mutation.
 
CAUSES
 
Myth: Pollutants are not linked to breast cancer risk.

Reality: Powerful evidence indicates that there is a connection between chemicals and breast cancer. While we pursue the research that will lead to even more definitive answers, we can and should reduce our exposure to substances that appear to cause cancer

Myth: You can't get breast cancer after a mastectomy.
Reality: Breast cancer can occur after a mastectomy, sometimes at the site of the scar or the original cancer may have spread.  After prophylactic mastectomy a healthy woman's risk for developing breast cancer is reduced by about 90%.
 
Myth: Caffeine causes breast cancer.
Reality: No causal connection has been found between caffeine and getting breast cancer; in fact, some research suggests that caffeine may lower your risk. 
 
Myth: Radiation from annual mammograms increases your risk of cancer.
Reality: There is concern that the radiation exposure in a mammogram could be increasing breast cancer risk. Studies suggest that as much as one additional breast cancer case results from every 10,000 mammography procedures. The breast tissue of younger women is more sensitive to the effects of radiation. However, most breast cancer specialists consider mammograms a safe imaging procedure with benefits that far outweigh the risks.
  
Myth: Needle biopsies can cause cancer cells to spread.
Reality: A 2004 study found no increased spread of cancer among patients who had  needle biopsies compared to those who did not have the procedure.