One of the major causes of deaths around the globe is cancer. Every year, millions and millions of people succumb to death due to cancer. It is very dangerous due to the fact that it’s not curable in most cases especially when realised at advanced stages. The matter becomes worse in Low Developed Countries where the medical services are poor and a lot of people only dream about medical check ups. Breast cancer is considered by many people to be for women but men can also contract it. We take a quick look at the causes, symptoms, and ways of reducing the risks of contracting it.

Causes of Breast Cancer
Some of the known causes of breast cancer include advancing age and family background. According to research, if a person has a previous relative who had breast cancer, the chances are high that she/he can get the disease. Older women above 50 years of age also possess a higher risk of getting breast cancer than the younger ones. The risk to breast cancer is increased when a woman starts her menstruation before 12 years, gives birth after 30 years, stops menstruating after 55 years of age or if she has a menstrual cycle that is shorter or longer than 26-29 days which is the average. Obesity and drinking a lot of alcohol can also lead to increased risk of breast cancer.

What are the symptoms of breast cancer?
–  Breast swelling
–  Skin irritation or dimpling
–  Developing pain in breast or nipple
–  Nipple retraction (turning inward)
–  Redness or thickening of the nipple or breast skin
–  Nipple discharge (other than breast milk)

How does male breast cancer feels like?
Symptoms of breast cancer in men are related to those in women. The feel of a breast lump depends on things like its cause, location as well as growth. They can be painful, hard and or still. However, they can also be soft, painless, and easily moveable. Lumps are more likely to be cancerous if they are painless, soft and immobile. Most times, men take long to realise the disease not until they develop serious signs like bleeding of the nipple. This is very dangerous as by this time, the cancer may have reached the advanced stage.

How to reduce the risk of contracting breast cancer?
As we all know when it comes to cancer, prevention is the best way to go. Cases of patients who have been cured of cancer are rare just like miracles. Therefore, you can follow the simple steps below to lower the chances of getting breast cancer.
–   Limit alcohol. You are advised to take at least one bottle a day if restraining is inevitable.
–   Don’t smoke. Smoking not only destroys lungs but it is also related to breast cancer. Therefore, do not smoke not only to save your lungs but also to avoid breast cancer.
–   Control your weight. Obesity is very dangerous especially in advancing ages. Try as much as possible to keep in shape by avoiding lots of fat.
–   Be physically active. Always make sure that you spare some time off the busy office schedule to do some drills however light they maybe.
–   Breast-feed. Forget feeding your baby with cow milk because you want to remain with ‘young-straight-pointed-breasts’ for ever. You are limiting your life span by doing so.

Source: Internet