Breast Cancer

Promising Blood Test Could Help to Predict Breast Cancer Recurrence

Researchers developed a customized blood test that may soon direct breast cancer patients to more personalized and effective treatments

By Alice Park August 8, 2019

Birth Control Pills May Help Prevent Some Cancers

A new study looks at how oral contraceptives affect cancer risk

By Alice Park January 18, 2018

Working the Night Shift Could Raise Your Cancer Risk

Working the night shift is linked to a number of health issues, from heart disease to obesity to sleep disorders—and even cancer. Now, in a new report, researchers in China have found that women who...

By Alice Park January 8, 2018

Cancer Deaths Have Dropped 26% in Recent Years

Since 1991, the cancer death rate has dropped by 26%, according to the latest data from the American Cancer Society (ACS). That decline represents nearly 2.4 million lives saved from cancer. The decreasing death rate...

By Alice Park January 4, 2018

Here's a Promising Way to Treat Pain in Breast Cancer Treatment

Every year, tens of thousands of breast cancer survivors are prescribed aromatase inhibitors—medications recommended for up to ten years to protect against a recurrence of the disease. But these drugs can cause side effects, including...

By Amanda MacMillan December 7, 2017

Hormonal Birth Control Is Linked to Increased Risk of Breast Cancer

Hormone-based contraceptives are linked to a higher risk of breast cancer, according to a new study

By Alice Park December 6, 2017

It's Time to End Mammograms, Some Experts Say

Prevention is the best medicine, doctors say, and nowhere is that truer than in cancer. Picking up early signs of disease is the best way to prevent cancer from taking root, so doctors have urged...

By Alice Park December 6, 2017

We’ve Got the Wrong Idea About ‘Processed Food‘

These are today's best ideas

By The Aspen Institute October 17, 2017

40% of Cancers Are Linked to Being Overweight

The rate of new cancer cases has decreased in the United States since the 1990s. But increases in overweight- and obesity-related cancers—which now account for 40% of all U.S. cancers—are likely slowing that progress, according...

By Amanda MacMillan October 5, 2017

Breast Cancer Deaths Drop Nearly 40% In the U.S.

Deaths from breast cancer continued to decline, dropping by nearly 40% from 1989 to 2015

By Alice Park October 3, 2017

Gaming Makes People Better Learners

These are today's best ideas

By The Aspen Institute October 3, 2017

Here’s When Women Should Be Screened for Breast Cancer

There’s been a lot of back and forth in recent years over mammogram screening to prevent breast cancer, and major health groups still disagree. Here’s what the controversy is all about

By Alice Park September 28, 2017

6 Surprising Things That May Improve Breast Cancer Treatment

Being diagnosed with breast cancer can make a person feel powerless, but there are some things women can do to potentially improve how they feel throughout the process. Here are some strategies recommended by experts—and...

By Alexandra Sifferlin September 25, 2017

I Treated Breast Cancer for Years as a Doctor. Then I Was Diagnosed

I was a cancer expert long before I was a patient: in control, passionate about my work and invulnerable. Yet all of this would change with one phone call. It was a morning like many...

By Pamela Munster September 25, 2017

Yoga Improves Sleep in People Being Treated For Cancer

People receiving chemotherapy are often plagued by insomnia at night and excessive drowsiness during the day. But a new study in the journal Cancer suggests that yoga can help. Breast cancer patients in the study...

By Amanda MacMillan September 20, 2017

Why More Women Are Getting a Double Mastectomy

Recent research has shown that despite having more treatment options, women with cancer in one breast are increasingly choosing to remove both breasts—even though experts in the field say the procedure is not necessarily accompanied...

By Alexandra Sifferlin September 13, 2017

This Pen Can Diagnose Cancer in 10 Seconds

When it comes to treating cancer, surgeons want to get rid of as much cancerous tissue as possible during tumor removal. Now a new technology—the size of a pen—is attempting to make that easier by...

By Alexandra Sifferlin September 6, 2017

Statin Heart Drugs May Protect Against Breast Cancer

Women with high cholesterol tend to have lower rates of breast cancer than those with lower levels, according to new research, and those who do get breast cancer are less likely to die from their...

By Amanda MacMillan August 31, 2017

FDA Approves Gene Therapy Treatment for Cancer

The Food and Drug Administration approved a revolutionary cancer treatment that some say could provide cures for leukemias and lymphomas

By Alice Park August 30, 2017

Cancer's Newest Miracle Cure

It combines the power of genetics and the immune system, and it's saving lives

By Alice Park August 10, 2017

Why Inflammation in Your Mouth May Raise Your Risk of Cancer

Women with gum disease are 14% more likely to develop cancer than those with healthy teeth and gums, according to a study published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention. The link appears to be strongest...

By Amanda MacMillan August 8, 2017

The Link Between Alcohol and Breast Cancer Is Stronger

The latest research extends the risk to black women as well as white women

By Alice Park May 1, 2017

Most Doctors' Breast Cancer Advice May Be Out of Date

Different health groups have different recommendations about who should get screened for breast cancer. And the even doctors are divided or which advice to follow

By Alice Park April 10, 2017

Immunotherapy May Treat This Deadly Breast Cancer

Triple negative breast cancer is one of the most difficult types of cancer to treat. It lacks proteins that can attract powerful anti-cancer and hormone drugs, so people diagnosed with the disease have to rely...

By Alice Park April 3, 2017

My Breast Cancer Diagnosis Almost Came Too Late

But I knew I could get an appointment at Planned Parenthood

By Jaime Benner March 24, 2017

The Cancer-Soy Connection Is Getting Less Confusing

Studies on soy’s effect on breast cancer have been confusing to say the least — some suggest that soy can lower risk of dying from the cancer, while others hint that it can interfere with powerful treatments. The latest study clears up some of that confusion

By Alice Park March 6, 2017

The Dark Side of Breast-Cancer Treatment

Side effects are the price for effective cancer treatments, and in the latest report researchers say nearly half of women experience adverse effects from their therapies, which can affect their recovery

By Alice Park January 24, 2017

The Case for Yearly Mammograms Is Complicated

Current breast cancer screening strategies aren’t reducing the amount of advanced cases

By Alice Park January 9, 2017

42% Fewer U.S. Women Are Dying of Breast Cancer

Breast cancer deaths are down in many countries worldwide—but some still have major work to do

By Alice Park December 9, 2016

Clean Up Empty Lots to Reduce Shootings

These are today's best ideas

By The Aspen Institute October 24, 2016

Facebook Accidentally Removes 'Offensive' Swedish Breast Cancer Awareness Video

The ad has since been re-approved

By Abigail Abrams October 20, 2016

New Frontiers In Breast Cancer

There are paradigm shifts in how breast cancer is screened for and treated—and that's good news for patients

By Alice Park October 6, 2016

No, You Can’t Prevent All Cancers

My wife's diagnosis taught me a lot about the disease

By Will Clower October 5, 2016

How Having Low Expectations May Affect Breast Cancer Treatment

Women expecting the worst from breast cancer treatment experienced more side effects, in a new study

By Alexandra Sifferlin August 23, 2016

Here Are The Things Women Can Do to Avoid Breast Cancer

A new study suggests even women with a family history of breast cancer can reduce their risk with lifestyle changes

By Alexandra Sifferlin May 26, 2016

What Teen Girls Should Eat to Reduce Breast Cancer Risk

Eating more fruits from a younger age may help ward off cancer

By Alice Park May 11, 2016

Personalized Breast Cancer Treatment Gets Closer to Reality

Breast cancer's distinctive genetic patterns could pave the way for more personalized treatment in the future

By Alexandra Sifferlin May 2, 2016

Janice Dickinson Reacts to Her Breast Cancer Diagnosis: ‘I’m Going to Stick Around For a Long Time’

She says she feels like she's living in a 'nightmarish dream'

By Char Adams / People March 28, 2016

What If Your Immune System Could Be Taught to Kill Cancer?

Her chart said ‘Two weeks to fatal event.’ Ten years later, she’s still alive

By Alice Park March 24, 2016

Study: Rate of Double Mastectomies Tripled In 10 Years

The latest data show that more women are removing healthy breasts to avoid cancer. But that isn’t helping them to prevent the disease or to survive longer

By Alice Park March 11, 2016

How Elective Breast Cancer Surgery Affects Quality of Life

A new study questions the breast cancer treatment status quo

By Alexandra Sifferlin March 7, 2016

New Clarity on Who Needs Mammograms — When

A government-convened panel of experts is sticking with its recommendation that mammograms have the most benefit in lowering the risk of breast cancer for women over 50. Other groups are coming closer to that advice as well

By Alice Park January 11, 2016

Who Can Delay Breast Cancer Treatment? A New Math Model Adds Clues

A new study adds to a growing conversation on the best way to treat women with stage 0 breast cancer

By Alexandra Sifferlin December 16, 2015

With Early Breast Cancer Treatment, Less May be More: Studies

Two new studies find benefits of breast-conserving therapy over mastectomy for early stage breast cancer

By Alexandra Sifferlin December 10, 2015

How Cryotherapy Prevents Hair Loss From Chemo

For women getting chemotherapy to treat breast cancer, there’s a new device that could help them keep their hair

By Alice Park December 9, 2015

'Chemobrain' Is Real — and More Likely With Certain Drugs

Researchers pinpoint the type of chemotherapy that is more likely to harm the brain of breast cancer patients

By Alice Park December 3, 2015

Breast Cancer

Google's AI Bested Doctors in Detecting Breast Cancer in Mammograms

New Study Suggests Women With Dense Breast Tissue May Benefit From Regular MRIs

I Hadn't Planned to Be the Subject of My Own Photos. Then I Was Diagnosed With Breast Cancer at 29

Why the Women Most Likely to Die of Breast Cancer Have Gotten the Least Attention