Breast Cancer Awareness Month
By: Riley Duignan
As October quickly rolls in, it’s important to include ourselves in the awareness of breast cancer, mourn the lives lost, and celebrate the fighting and survivors. Breast cancer is the most common cancer type in the United States.
Breast cancer is the buildup of cancerous cells in the breast tissue. If not caught early enough in the development, it is possible to spread to organs or other parts of the body, becoming fatal. But, this is not likely for breast cancer to become fatal; in fact, there is only a 2.3% fatality rate for breast cancer. Women are most likely to develop breast cancer, with every 1 in 8 women experiencing breast cancer in their lifetime. Women are almost 100 times more likely to develop it, with only 1 in 726 men experiencing it in their lifetime.
The pink ribbon was established as the breast cancer awareness symbol in 1991, with pink being a color of femininity and often portrayed with feminine characteristics. It was used as the primary color for breast cancer awareness, as it primarily affects women.
It is expected that around 319,750 women will experience breast cancer in 2025, while fewer than 3000 men will experience it. In the US specifically, breast cancer treatment can also be extremely expensive and vary by the stage it is in.
Early stages of breast cancer can often be treated for $60-80,000. Not cheap, right? But if it is in a further stage, it can cost up to 130,000.
The average individual income in the United States is $40,000, which means cancer treatment can be up to or over 3 times the average income. This is a huge problem. Patients who need medical care often can’t afford it or struggle to keep up with payments. According to the Jama Network, around 31.8% of patients receiving medical treatment for breast cancer had pulled back on medical care due to the expense. In addition, around 51% of patients who received medical treatment report severe cancer-related medical debt. 61% struggling to keep up with payments for treatment.
Comparing this to the UK, Breast cancer patients in the UK overall get medical treatment paid and covered by the NHS, making treatment accessibility extremely easier. It costs the US economy a much greater burden due to the high drug and treatment prices, compared to the UK, which takes a toll from these paid-for expenses.
It is important we honor the lives lost, fighting, and fought against breast cancer, and actively acknowledge the struggle and hardships of it. You can support victims and research for breast cancer by donating to various programs. Here are a few:
Sources:
https://www.fightcancer.org/releases/survey-half-cancer-patients-and-survivors-report-incurring-cancer-related-medical-debt-over
https://www.breastcancer.org/managing-life/covering-cost-of-care/cost-of-care-report
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2801099
https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/breast-cancer/about/how-common-is-breast-cancer.html#:~:text=Overall%2C%20the%20average%20risk%20of,will%20never%20have%20the%20disease.
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/breast-cancer
https://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/priorities/breast-cancer.html
patientpower.info/breast-cancer/cost-of-breast-cancer-treatment#:~:text=Stage%200:%20$60%2C637,Stage%204:%20$134%2C682
https://www.nationalbreastcancer.org/breast-cancer-facts/
https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/breast-cancer-in-men/about/key-statistics.html
https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/coping/practically/overseas-visitors/private-treatment#:~:text=Cancer%20treatment%20is%20free%20to,are%20a%20British%20citizen