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Recover Survivorship Preventing Breast Cancer Recurrence

Being called a "” implies that you have beat or conquered something, or “won a battle.” In some cases, overcoming can be a battle, whether it’s surviving treatment or managing your life after treatment.

As a , you may wonder if the battle ever really is over. Will you always be cancer free? What will you do if you have a ?

Unfortunately, the truth is that anyone who has had is at risk for . Several factors influence the rate. Usually, if a woman’s was detected at an early stage and localized to the breast, there is a 20 percent to 30 percent risk for . If it is detected after the has spread to the and beyond, the rate then rises to between 30 percent and 60 percent. rates also depend on the cell type -- whether it’s -- and a woman’s initial response to treatment.

The recommends the following for preventing a :
  1. Be as lean as possible. Being overweight increases your risk for a for a variety of reasons. In addition to putting a strain on your heart and immune system, fat cells produce and store , which has been linked to .
  1. Be physically active for at least 30 minutes every day, for instance, walking 3 to 5 hours each week. According to a study in the May 2005 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, the risk of death for patients decreased by 50 percent when they added exercise to their daily routine.
  2. Avoid sugary drinks. Limit consumption of energy-dense foods.
  3. Eat more of a variety of vegetables, fruits, whole grains and legumes such as beans. Eat fewer foods that contain and pesticides. These include beef, pork and lamb, cheese and other milk products. Also, avoid processed meats.
  4. Reduce your intake of fat. A study conducted by the showed that a low-fat diet reduced the rate of in women who limited their daily fat intake to 33.3 grams, the equivalent of just more than 1 oz. of fat.
  5. If consumed at all, limit alcoholic drinks to 1 a day. According to Breastcancer.org, alcohol has been linked to a higher rate in .
  6. Limit consumption of salty foods and foods processed with salt (sodium).
  7. Don't rely solely on supplements to protect against cancer. Take chemoprevention medications. Drugs such as , and block the effects of on breast tissue or disrupt production, which reduces the risk of in women with .
  8. Get tested for the . Only women with a strong family history of breast or ovarian cancer need to undergo this genetic test, according to the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force.
  9. After menopause, avoid using hormone replacement therapy. This includes oral, topical and transvaginal medications. If you must take replacement medications, make sure to take progesterone supplements at the same time. may decrease the risks that poses to the breasts.
  10. However, limit or avoid the use of estrogen- or progesterone-based pills for or symptoms (, irritability, vaginal dryness). These may increase the risk of . With vaginal creams, gels and rings, the are generally confined to the genital area. But these medications can be absorbed into the bloodstream and travel to the breasts.
  11. Ask your doctor about taking to reduce your risk of . This medication is traditionally used to maintain bone density in cancer patients, but studies presented at the 2005 annual meeting of the look promising.
  12. Try , a procedure that uses radiation to target lingering cancer cells in the breast following a . The procedure involves placing a catheter into the breast with an inflatable balloon attached to the end. A radioactive source is then placed into the catheter, according to the .
  13. Undergo preventive surgery to reduce breast cancer . While a bilateral mastectomy cannot eliminate the risk of a , it can reduce the risk by as much as 90 percent. Preventive surgery to remove the ovaries may also reduce risk and the risk of recurrence by as much as 50 percent, according to the .

Essentially, managing your overall , eating healthy foods, engaging in regular physical activity and reducing stress are vital elements in preventing and increasing the chance of survival.  Also, minimizing your exposure to risky environmental factors such as cancer-promoting chemicals – especially through your diet -- and carcinogens minimizes your risk of .
From a natural and holistic standpoint, it is beneficial to have insight to your biological make-up, i.e. your constitution, or your . According to , which is the  “science of life,” your , essentially, is the pattern of your biological system. is the art of healthy living by using techniques that relate to self-knowledge and self-care.

You can and learn how to possibly make adjustments to your life to continue your healing process and recovery from treatment.  Once you know your , you can understand the choices you can make to nourish your mind, body and spirit in order to prevent .

The combination of diet, lifestyle and medicines plays an important role in the prevention and treatment of . There are certain guidelines in that are necessary to be followed to keep you healthy and in balance. According to , any diet or lifestyle factor that disturbs your body’s can cause cancer. So, it’s important to eat to give your body what it needs to heal and protect itself.

takes a different approach to achieving good health than what you are probably accustomed to. It looks at the “whole person” to eliminate the cause of disease through natural therapies. purports that you can improve your health and prevent serious illness by making simple dietary and lifestyle changes, incorporating purification techniques into your daily routine that restore balance to your body and .

These resources provide more detailed information to help you learn more about how to prevent :

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For more information on preventing , go to . You can share your knowledge and experience with other at or start a discussion in our .

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Breast Cancer Partner Events

September 29, 2012
'Pamper Me Pink' Breast Cancer Event, Floyd County, IN

September 22 – October 28, 2012
Shine Your Light Bright for the Cancer Fight, San Marcos, TX

September 29, 2012
Pink October Velvet Sessions with Bret Michaels, Hard Rock Hotel, Universal Orlando, Orlando, FL

September 30, October 3, 2012
American College of Lifestyle Medicine Conference – “Treating the Cause”, Orlando, FL

September 30, 2012
Prevent Cancer Foundation 5K Race, Washington, D.C.

October 3, 2012
The Beauty of Caring Event, San Francisco, CA

October 11, 2012
Cancer and Careers Online Event Legal & Insurance Issues to Consider

October 13 – 14, 2012
Lance Armstrong Foundation Live Long Run, Walk, Ride Event, Hallandale Beach, FL

October20, 2012
SASS Foundation 18th Annual Breast Cancer Awareness Day, Uniondale, NY

October 27 – 30
AACR Cancer Health Disparities Conference, San Diego, CA

November 15, 2012
Cancer and Careers Online Event Re-Entering the Workforce After Short & Long Absences

 

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