54 | October 2012 www.womanthismonth.com Showcase The Importance of Being Informed BAHRAIN SPECIALIST HOSPITAL As high as the risks are for contracting breast cancer, there are some risk factors that you can control to lower your likelihood of falling ill. Breast cancer is a scary concept that unfortunately many women face. Understandably, there is an eagerness to learn as much as possible about the illness and what measures can be taken to reduce the risks of contracting it. Doctors advise that a woman leads the healthiest lifestyle possible by carefully controlling everyday elements, such as diet and fitness. By following these guidelines, a woman can ensure her breast cancer risk remains as low as possible. Risk factors that can be controlled One of the first steps a woman can take to reduce her risk is to maintain a consistent and healthy weight, appropriate to her body. “If a woman is overweight, she greatly increases the risks of breast cancer, particularly if she has already gone through menopause,” explains Dr Tarek El-Gohary, consultant medical oncologist at Bahrain Specialist Hospital. “After menopause, fat tissue is the body’s key source of estrogen and if the level of fat tissue is increased it can enlarge the chance of breast cancer.” Dr Tarek advises that women control their diets by consuming plenty of fruits and vegetables and by steering away from high-fat foods. “Doctors would recommend that alcohol is not consumed often at all,” says Dr Tarek. “Alcohol will stop the liver being able to control the blood levels of the hormone estrogen.” Regular exercise has also been shown to reduce the risk of breast cancer. The doctor suggests that one hour of exercise five days a week is a substantial amount to keep the body fit and healthy and in better shape to fight off breast cancer, should a woman develop it. And there is one other natural method which Dr Tarek indicates as a successful form of staving off the cancer. Both pregnancy and breastfeeding reduce the amount of menstrual cycles in a woman’s life, and this appears to reduce future breast cancer risk. Risk factors that can’t be controlled Unfortunately, there are many risk factors that can’t be controlled. “Simply growing older is the second biggest risk factor for breast cancer (second to being a woman). From age 30 to 39, the risk is one in 233, or 43 per cent. That jumps to one in 27, or almost four per cent by the time a woman is in her 60s,” explains Dr Tarek. If a woman has a first-degree relative (mother, daughter, sister) who has had breast cancer, or you have multiple relatives affected by breast or ovarian cancer (especially before they turned age 50), she could be at a higher risk of getting breast cancer. Furthermore, if a woman has already been diagnosed with breast cancer, her risk of developing it again, either in the same breast or in the other, is higher than if she never had the disease. Call 17 812-000. Dr Tarek El-Gohary
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