October 12, 2008

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• National Breast Cancer Awareness Month
• Bonus Challenge
• What's New on the WAT?

Welcome to week 15 of the WOMAN Activity Tracker! Every 5 weeks you will receive an e-mail from the WOMAN Activity Tracker Team that includes program features, health tips, and the newest Bonus Challenge information.

National Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Other than skin cancer, breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in the United States. It is the second leading cause of cancer death in women, after lung cancer.

• About 182,460 women in the United States will be found to have invasive breast cancer in 2008.
• About 40,480 women will die from breast cancer this year.
• Right now there are about two and a half million breast cancer survivors in the United States.
• The chance of a woman having invasive breast cancer some time during her life is about 1 in 8.
• The chance of dying from breast cancer is about 1 in 35.

Source: American Cancer Society

Early Detection and Screening

Breast cancer screening means checking a woman's breasts for cancer before there are signs or symptoms of the disease. Three main tests are used to screen the breasts for cancer. Talk to your doctor about which tests are right for you, and when you should have them.

• Breast Self-Exam – Regular self-exams are optional, but doing them is a good way to get to know how your breasts normally look and feel. This can help you detect changes to ask your doctor about. Learn more about breast self-exam.

• Clinical Breast Exam – Women between the ages of 20 and 39 should have a doctor examine their breasts at least once every 3 years. After age 40, women should have a clinical breast exam every year. Learn more about clinical breast exams ( PDF file, 992 Kb).

• Screening Mammogram – Women ages 40 and older should have a mammogram screening every 1 to 2 years. Learn more about mamograms.

If a screening test is abnormal, you may need to have more tests done to find out if you have cancer.

Learn more

• What You Need to Know About Breast Cancer, from the National Cancer Institute
• Breast Awareness and Breast Self-Exam FAQ
• How to Perform a Breast Self-Exam, from the American Cancer Society
• What to Expect During a Clinical Breast Exam ( PDF file, 992 Kb), from the California Department of Public Health
• Mammograms FAQ
• Test Your Knowledge of Breast Health, from the Susan G. Komen for the Cure®
• National Breast Cancer Foundation

Bonus Challenge

Earn an extra point and move along your route quicker! Take the 5 question quiz, "Perfecting Your Breast Self-Exam Technique", to test your test your knowledge of breast self-exam technique.

Take the Quiz!

What's New on the WAT?

Would you like to promote the WOMAN Activity Tracker in your community and spread the word about it to everyone you think may benefit from participating? We have all the tools you need to do just that in our Promotion Tools section. From fact sheets to press release templates and more, it's all here!

Content last updated October 12, 2008.