Breast cancer rates are rising in the U.S. among adults under the age of 50.
While the number of early cases has ticked up steadily over the past two decades, researchers reported a sudden spike in 2016 — and they don’t yet know why.
In 2000, there were 64 cases per 100,000 people, with rates increasing 0.24 percent each year for the next 16 years. But between 2016 and 2019, there was a stunning 3.76 percent surge, according to doctors at Washington University in St. Louis.
“The increase in incidence we are seeing is alarming and cannot be explained by genetic factors, alone which evolve over much longer periods nor by changes in screening practices given that women under 40 years are below the recommended age for routine mammography screening,” Dr. Rebecca Kehm, an assistant professor at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, said in a statement.
This year, physicians expect nearly 317,000 new cases and more than 42,000 deaths in women of all ages. The most common cancer among women, less than half of adults recognize symptoms of breast cancer other than a noticeable lump. So, how do you know if you might be at risk? There are seven symptoms oncologists want people to look out for, and early detection could save your life.
The tell-tale lump
The most common symptom of breast cancer is a hard-feeling lump or the swelling of part or all of the breast, according to the American Cancer Society.
That’s why doctors ask women to conduct monthly breast examinations, feeling for the lumps with their hands.
However, most breast cancers do not present with one that can be detected by touch, according to experts at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center. If they do, it may mean an advanced-stage cancer.
Orange peel-looking skin
Skin that dimples around the breasts can also be a sign of cancer.
“As a breast mass grows larger, it can pull the skin inward,” Dr. Arthy Yoga, a breast surgical oncologist at Houston Methodist, explained. “This can cause the skin to look dimpled or like there is a divot in it. If the mass is below the nipple, it can cause the nipple to pull inward.”
If your nipple caves in
A nipple that retracts or inverts is another possible sign of breast cancer.
This happens when a tumor invades a milk duct, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
“My left breast kept getting harder and harder, and a few months later, the nipple inverted,” Minnesota accountant and breast cancer survivor Stephanie Cobb recalled in an interview with Texas’s MD Anderson Cancer Center. “Shortly after that, I noticed a rash, and my breast developed a leathery texture.”
Discharge from the nipple – other than breast milk
Not all nipple discharge is worrisome. But if it’s bloody and happening only with one nipple, Yoga says that can also be a sign of breast cancer.
“Bloody nipple discharge can have benign causes, but we have to keep breast cancer in our minds as a possible differential diagnosis,” he said.
Flaking and red skin around the nipple
Dry, red or flaking skin is also a symptom.
Although, there are several other causes to be aware of, such as chafing, yeast infections, and eczema.
More than 30 million Americans have eczema.
Pain around the nipple
A tumor may cause pain when it pushes into tissue.
However, pain is also one of the first symptoms of inflammatory breast cancer known as Paget’s disease of the nipple – an aggressive type of invasive breast cancer.
Less than four percent of breast cancer cases involve the disease, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Swollen lymph nodes
Swelling lymph nodes under the arm or near the collar bone should also raise alarm bells. So should lumps around the areas.
“Those can be signs that the breast cancer has already spread to nearby lymph nodes,” oncologist Dr. Bora Lim Lim told MD Anderson, “so you really need to insist on having imaging done in those two situations.”
