Tuesday, September 27, 2005

breast cancer: good news, bad news, other news

The good news on the breast cancer front is that my annual mammogram came back normal, so that's a huge sigh of relief. I wasn't anticipating any problems, and it's sure nice to know there weren't any.

The bad news is that the risk of developing pre-menopausal breast cancer is 2.4 times higher for left-handed women.

Guess who's left-handed?

In other news, being hypothyroid seems to be protective against breast cancer, with a 61% reduced risk. However, for white, pre-menopausal women who have been diagnosed with thyroid cancer (guess who, again), there is a significant increase in the risk of developing breast cancer.

Even more incentive for me to be diligent about monthly self-examinations. You can bet I'll never miss an annual mammogram, either.

1 comment:

nina said...

Ultimately, there are hormonal factors that seem at play. I, too, was born left handed and even though I was forced to change in school, that matters not at all. Nor, apparently, does the fact that I eat a low fat diet. But my mother's breast cancer weighs in on my odds.
What's a woman to do? Well, yes, exams. And keep in mind the fact that ultimately, breast cancer is not a death warrant. But you know that already.