Today is the day
Be brave
Learn the facts. Know your risk. We'll face it together.
Talking about cancer is hard. Be the first to start the conversation about cancer risk with your family and friends.
The power of HERstory
Too often breast cancer is thought of as a disease that impacts older women, but nearly 10% of all breast cancer cases in the United States are found in women younger than 45 years of age. If you’re young and Black, the risks, incidence of diagnosis, and death rate are far greater than if you’re young and white. Still, far too many young women of color don’t know their risk for this disease or how to lower it.
Black women have a higher chance of developing breast cancer before the age of 40 than White women.
Risk for breast cancer among young women varies based on a multitude of factors, such as family and personal history of cancer, genetic mutations, as well as not being physically active and drinking alcohol.
However, research from our National Needs Assessment of Young Women and TOUCH The Black Breast Cancer Experience confirms that young Black women are disproportionately impacted by this disease.
Talking to your family about its history with cancer is the first step to understanding your breast cancer risk. While this can be a tough conversation, it can help you and your family members understand your risk for hereditary cancer and make a plan to manage it.
Today is the day
Learn the facts. Know your risk. We'll face it together.
Talking about cancer is hard. Be the first to start the conversation about cancer risk with your family and friends.
It is recommended that you seek genetic counseling before getting genetic testing. When you first meet with a genetic counselor, your discussions will focus on you and your family’s health and cancer histories. Your counselor will use this information to help you decide whether to get genetic testing.
Genetic testing analyzes DNA to look for a genetic alteration that may indicate an increased risk for developing a specific disease or disorder. There are several types of tests to search for mutations thought to cause breast cancer.
The testing process for breast cancer-related gene mutations is a simple blood or cheek-swab test. A saliva (spit) sample also may be collected. Your sample will then be sent to a lab that will search for gene mutations. A report will be returned to your doctor or genetic counselor. It may take 2 to 3 weeks, or more, for your test results to come back.
These are some important points to remember about genetic mutations and breast cancer:
Some people are more likely than others to be diagnosed with breast cancer. Previvor is a term that’s often used to describe people who have a high risk of developing breast cancer. If you find yourself in this group, here are some ways that you can connect with other people who are at high risk for breast cancer.
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About the campaign
Living Beyond Breast Cancer and our partners are proud to join the Centers for Disease Control (CDC)’s Bring Your Brave Campaign. Launched in 2015, the Bring Your Brave Campaign is about using information, frank conversations, and real stories of young women whose lives have been impacted by breast cancer to generate awareness and ensure young women not only know their risk but also know what they can do about it.
This campaign was supported by the Grant or Cooperative Agreement Number 1 NU58DP006672, funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or the Department of Health and Human Services.