With Breast Cancer Rates Rising in Connecticut, RCCA Oncologists Offer Insights and Advice

• Increasing age;

• Family history of breast cancer or other cancer;

• Personal history of breast cancer or a high-risk breast lesion;

• Past radiation therapy, particularly to the chest;

• Known genetic abnormality that can cause breast cancer;

• Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry; (High-risk genetic abnormalities are common in this ethnic population.)

• Never having been pregnant;

• Not having been pregnant before age 35;

• Starting menstruation at a relatively early age;

• Beginning menopause at a relatively late age;

• Postmenopausal hormone therapy;

• Obesity;

• Alcohol consumption

“While many of these factors are beyond a woman’s control – such as age and family history – others can be modified to reduce risk,” says Dr. Reale, noting the importance of maintaining a healthy weight, being physically active, and either not drinking alcohol or drinking only in moderation.

Further, he notes, it is important for women to have mammograms at regular intervals because prompt detection of breast cancer allows for treatment in the earliest stages of the disease, when the likelihood of successful outcomes is highest.

He adds, “In May 2023, the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), an independent, volunteer panel of experts in disease prevention, released a draft recommendation that women at average risk for breast cancer should begin having mammograms at age 40.⁴ Previously, the USPSTF said that women at average risk should not start screening until age 50, and that decisions about screening women in their 40’s should be made on an individual basis. Given the increasing incidence of breast cancer, I support this recommendation and urge all women to begin having mammograms at the age appropriate for their risk status, to continue having mammograms at the specified intervals, and to be alert to any changes in their breasts that may warrant medical evaluation.”

Dr. Kapoor says, “While the rising number of breast cancer diagnoses is troubling, women should know that there are steps they can take to reduce their risk, that early detection can make a big difference, and that if they should ever have to face breast cancer, there is abundant cause for hope. My RCCA colleagues and I take care of hundreds of women with breast cancer each year, and while we hope you will never require our services, we are here for you if needed and proud to offer excellent care close to our patients’ homes.”

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Drs. Kapoor, Silver, Pazooki, and Reale are among the 90+ cancer specialists who treat patients at more than 20 RCCA care centers located throughout New Jersey, Connecticut, Maryland, and the Washington, DC, area. RCCA oncologists and hematologists see more than 23,000 new patients each year and provide care to more than 225,000 established patients.

RCCA offers the latest evidence-based treatments for breast cancer that are precisely tailored to each patient’s particular cancer. These treatments include:

• Surgery, during which a cancerous growth or tissue is removed;
• Radiotherapy, high-energy beams targeted to cancerous growths and tissue;
• Chemotherapy, an oral or intravenous chemical agent that kills cancer cells;
• Hormonal therapy, which blocks cancer cells from getting the hormones they need to grow.
• Immunotherapy, an oral or intravenous drug that prompts the immune system into identifying and killing cancer cells.
• Targeted therapy, which acts against specific cellular mutations driving cancer development and progression, while not affecting nearby healthy cells.

RCCA also offers opportunities for patients to participate in clinical trials of potentially beneficial investigational agents. RCCA has access to some 300 trials throughout its network.

In addition to serving patients who have solid tumors, blood-based cancers, and benign blood disorders such as anemia, RCCA care centers also provide infusion services to people with non-oncologic conditions—including multiple sclerosis, Crohn’s disease, asthma, iron-deficiency anemia, and rheumatoid arthritis—who take intravenously-administered medications.

To learn more about RCCA, call 844-928-0089 or visit RCCA.com.

References

1. American Cancer Society. Cancer Facts & Figures 2023. Available at: https://www.cancer.org/research/cancer-facts-statistics/all-cancer-facts-figures/2023-cancer-facts-figures.html. Accessed April 25, 2023.
2. American Cancer Society. Survival rates for breast cancer. Available at: https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/breast-cancer/understanding-a-breast-cancer-diagnosis/breast-cancer-survival-rates.html. Accessed June 23, 2023.
3. National Cancer Institute and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – State Cancer Profiles. Available at: http://statecancerprofiles.cancer.gov/data-topics/incidence.html. Accessed April 28, 2023.
4. United States Preventive Services Task Force. Draft Recommendation Statement: Breast Cancer Screening. May 9, 2023. Available at https://uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/uspstf/draft-recommendation/breast-cancer-screening-adults. Accessed May 11, 2023.

Breast cancer diagnoses: Recent trends in Connecticut

Source: National Cancer Institute and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – State Cancer Profiles. http://statecancerprofiles.cancer.gov/data-topics/incidence.html.