my personal report from CANCER HEALTH CENTRE

Compared to other women your age, your estimated risks for developing each of the following types of cancer within the next 10 years are:

1. Breast Cancer = VERY MUCH BELOW AVERAGE RISK (more than 90% below the average)
Your risk factors for breast cancer are: none identified.

 You are due for a clinical breast exam.

Factors that may be decreasing your risk for breast cancer are your: first menstrual period at age 15 or older and three hours of physical activity per week.

2. Colon Cancer = VERY MUCH BELOW AVERAGE RISK (more than 90% below the average)
Your risk factors for colon cancer are: none identified.

Factors that may be decreasing your risk for colorectal cancer are your: 3 hours of physical activity per week.

3. Lung Cancer = MUCH ABOVE AVERAGE RISK (2x to 5x the average risk)
Your risk factors for lung cancer are your: exposure to second-hand smoke and history of chemical exposure.

4. Melanoma = MUCH ABOVE AVERAGE RISK (2x to 5x the average risk)
Your risk factors for melanoma are your: light skin tone and history of severe sunburns.

Estimating cancer risk is tricky. Although we know many of the things that affect cancer risk, we don't know everything. Cancer risk may be affected by some of the choices you make in life, including whether you smoke or drink alcohol, what you eat, and how active you are. In addition, some cancer risk comes from things beyond your control. These things range from your age and sex to exposure to arsenic in your drinking water or pollution in the air where you live. But knowing that certain exposures may increase your risk allows you to take actions that may help reduce your overall risk.

Genes you inherited from your parents partly determine how much of an effect your lifestyle and environment have on your predisposition to cancer, too. All of those factors intertwine differently in different people, which is why it may seem that some people get cancer for no apparent reason, whereas others seem lucky if they avoid it.

We have done many calculations to arrive at the information for you, but it is still just an estimate. No one can know for sure whether cancer is in his or her future. We just hope that having a better idea of your risks will help you make choices that may help keep cancer out of your future.

About Breast Cancer
Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women, after skin cancer. About 290,000 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year in the U.S. The rate of breast cancer deaths has been falling, possibly due to finding cancer earlier and improved treatments. Still, breast cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer death in women. About 40,000 U.S. women will die from breast cancer this year, according to estimates from the American Cancer Society.

The risk factors for breast cancer that can't be changed include:
 Having a BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation
 Family history of breast cancer
 Your age
 Having certain noncancerous breast conditions
 Starting menstrual periods at an early age or going through menopause at a late age
 History of radiation therapy to the chest (such as for Hodgkin's disease)

Whether by choice or by chance, these breast cancer risk factors are determined by personal factors:
 Having had your first child after age 30
 Consuming alcohol
 Using combined estrogen-progesterone replacement therapy for several years
 Using birth control pills within the past 10 years
 Being overweight or obese

About Colon Cancer
Cancer in either the colon or rectum is called colorectal cancer. Colorectal cancer is the fourth most common cancer in men and women in the U.S. More than 101,000 people will develop cancer of the colon, and more than 39,000 will develop rectal cancer this year. More than 49,000 people are expected to die from colorectal cancer this year.

Many cases of colorectal cancer can be prevented with regular screening. Colorectal cancer often begins as a noncancerous growth called a polyp. After years of slow growth, some polyps become cancerous. Several risk factors have been shown to increase the risk of colorectal cancer.

The risk factors for colon cancer that can't be changed are:
 Your age
 Having an immediate relative with colon cancer
 Inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis)
 Race (For unclear reasons, African-Americans are at higher risk for colon cancer.)

The colon cancer risk factors that can be changed include:
 What you weigh: Being obese (BMI of 30 or greater) increases the risk of colorectal cancer.
 What you drink: Drinking more than one alcoholic drink per day increases the risk of colorectal cancer.
 What you eat: Eating red meat and processed meats most days of the week increases the risk of colorectal cancer.
 What you do about it: Not getting regular screening for colorectal cancer increases the chance that precancerous polyps won't be caught early.

Also, several actions may lower the risk for colon cancer. These include controlling risk factors that can be modified, such as diet and exercise: exercising at least three hours a week, eating five servings of fruits and vegetables every day.

About Lung Cancer
Lung cancer is the third most common cancer in men and women. More than 221,000 people will be diagnosed with lung cancer this year. Of all the cancers, lung cancer is responsible for the most cancer deaths -- by far; about 156,000 Americans will die from lung cancer this year.

Certain lung cancer risk factors are largely outside our control:
 Age: Two-thirds of people diagnosed with lung cancer are older than 65; only 3% are younger than 45.
 Family history of lung cancer
 History of radiation therapy to the chest (such as for Hodgkin's disease or breast cancer)
 Exposure to air pollution

However, the vast majority of all lung cancers (about 90%) are caused by smoking. Other lung cancer risk factors that may be able to be controlled include:
 Exposure to secondhand smoke (in particular, a nonsmoker who lives with a smoker)
 Exposure to asbestos
 Frequent exposure to diesel exhaust
 Exposure to radon gas in the home
 Exposure to arsenic (at work or in drinking water)

About Melanoma Skin Cancer
Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer. Melanoma is one type of skin cancer. Although melanoma accounts for less than 5% of skin cancers, it is usually the most serious type.

About 70,000 people in the U.S. will be diagnosed with melanoma this year. If it's found early, before it has spread, melanoma can be successfully treated and possibly cured with surgery. About 8,700 people will die from melanoma this year in the U.S.

Risk factors for melanoma include:
 Exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light
 Having a fair complexion; blond or red hair; or blue, green, or hazel eyes
 Multiple irregular moles
 Repeated blistering sunburns as a child
 Having an immediate family member who had melanoma
 History of taking medicines that suppress the immune system

Much of the risk for melanoma comes from our skin tone, eye color, and hair color. There's nothing you can do about those, nor can you erase the sunburns you suffered in the past.

Your best bet to prevent melanoma is to protect yourself from ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun. Limit your sun exposure, and take precautions when you are in the sun:
 Wear clothing and a wide-brimmed hat, and seek shade rather than baking in the sun.
 Wear sunscreen and lip balm with sun protection factor (SPF) of 30 or more.
 Wear sunglasses to protect your eyes.
 Keep children slathered with sunscreen if they'll be in the sun.