Awareness saves lives

ELIZABETH NIDER

Earlier this month, the Women’s League of Congregation Schara Tzedeck held an evening on A Future Without Breast Cancer: What You Need to Know. Event chair Barbara Silber welcomed the speakers and the audience, who were there to learn about the latest research on preventing, screening for, and decreasing one’s risk for breast cancer.

Moderator Pamela Fayerman, Vancouver Sun medical and health issues reporter, said, “The disease [was] shrouded in secrecy, but suddenly it is accepted and encouraged for women to talk about [their experiences].” Fayerman believes this is, in part, because of women sharing their experiences with the media.

While acknowledging the value of public symposia, panelist Dr. Karen Gelmon warned, “In a forum like this ... we’re talking in generalities. Remember that we’re all individuals, and care has to be given in an individual manner.” Gelmon is a medical oncologist at the B.C. Cancer Agency, and researcher and professor of medicine at the University of British Columbia. She is realistic about eradicating cancer: “The idea of a world without cancer is probably not going to happen, but let’s see how we can prevent as much as we can,” she said.

Gelmon explained that breast cancer is really different diseases that present in different ways, which means that there’s not one prevention or cure. There are currently six or seven major kinds of breast cancer, a number that is increasing. Ashkenazi Jews carry a higher number of the BRCA gene which, when mutated, can lead to a higher risk of breast cancer. Gelmon said that inheriting the gene does not mean that a person will develop breast cancer, but that it puts them at a greater risk.

Dr. Rhonda Low, family physician, medical journalist, public educator and associate professor at UBC’s department of family medicine, also serves as the host of the daily Your Health segment on CTV news. Low discussed the lifestyle factors that increase the risk of breast cancer, such as hormone replacement therapy. “When it comes to hormone replacement therapy, the risk goes back to normal once you’re off for five years ... so, take it for the shortest amount of time possible.” Low noted that, for women taking estrogen alone, there is no increased cancer risk.

Other risk factors include smoking, drinking and being 40 pounds overweight or more. Low admitted, “It’s a complicated relationship between fat and breast cancer,” but pointed out that one and a half to two and a half hours of exercise per week can work to decrease one’s risk by 18 percent.

Dr. Walter Lemmo, a naturopathic oncologist and past president of the Canadian Association of Naturopathic Doctors, told the crowd, “In essence, we’re applying principles that are applied to diabetes and cardiovascular disease.... Keep it simple and focus on caloric intake, which can help reduce the risk.” He recommended flax, mushrooms, Brassicaceae vegetables (including broccoli and cabbage) and green tea, all of which have been found to reduce breast cancer risk. And, he spoke about environmental concerns, particularly bisphenol A (BPA) which, he explained, is similar in structure to diethylstilbestrol, a synthetic estrogen that is known to cause cancer and reproductive abnormalities. BPA can be found in plastic bottles, linings of metal food cans and plastics labeled numbers three and seven in the recycling triangle. “BPA is starting to be connected to other diseases, not just breast cancer,” he warned.

An important take-home message was offered by Dr. Moira Stilwell, minister of advanced education and labor market development, who is a radiologist and nuclear medicine physician. “For the detection of breast cancer,” she said, “screening mammography saves lives. No other modality has been proven to decrease your chance of dying with breast cancer.” She also noted that, “a future without breast cancer is scientifically unrealistic, but we want it to be that when women get diagnosed with it, they’ll say thank goodness it’s only breast cancer.” Stilwell recommends that women 40 and over get a mammogram at least every two years.

Elizabeth Nider is a freelance writer living in Richmond.

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