Lower Your Risk For Breast Cancer

The disease is a killer, but as many as 60 percent of all cases in Europe are linked to causes we can control

- Lisa Bendall

BREAST CANCER IS THE MOST COMMON CANCER among European women. Even though the five-year survival rate—82 percent—has vastly improved over the past 30 years, one in eight women can still expect to be diagnosed with breast cancer. (It’s about 100 times rarer in men.) Many risk factors are out of our control: we’re more likely to develop the disease the older we get, for instance, or the taller we are, although this link may have to do with factors such as diet in childhood that contribute to height in adulthood. But current research is finding that women can, to some extent, shape their own odds.

“It’s incredibly important that people know they are not powerless,” says Susannah Brown, senior scientist at the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) in London, U.K. “There are steps they can take to help reduce their risk.”

Earlier this year, the WCRF partnered with the American Institute for Cancer Research to analyze more than 100 studies drawing on data from millions of women around the world. They found strong evidence of lowered breast cancer risk with simple lifestyle interventions. “It’s never too late to get healthier,” says Brown. “But the earlier you start, the better.” Here’s how to lower your risk.

- REDUCE ALCOHOL INTAKE

If you’re drinking for your health, think again. What you’re actually doing is raising your risk of seven different cancers, including colorectal and liver cancer. One drink a day increases your chances of developing breast cancer specifically by as much as 10 percent. Two drinks and you double it by up to 20 percent.