Lillie on Cancer: Helping Our Daughters Confront Breast Cancer Risk

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Once she recovers from the shock of her own diagnosis, nearly every woman with breast cancer and a daughter wonders: What are her chances of getting breast cancer? 
 
I speak from experience. I was 38 the first time I was diagnosed; my daughter was just 12. When I was diagnosed for a second time, at age 40, I feared I might have passed the disease on through my genes. 
 
My daughter is now 28—a significant age for her and for me, because she is now 10 years younger than I was when I first faced breast cancer. That means she needs to start some kind of breast imaging this year. The rule of thumb is: Take the age of the mother at the time of diagnosis and subtract 10. If that number is lower than 40, it’s the age at which the daughter should begin breast screening. 
 
Many factors influence a daughter’s risk. In addition to her mother’s age at diagnosis, these include having other family history of breast or ovarian cancer, starting menstruation early, and certain lifestyle habits, among others. 
 
Ways to reduce risk
My daughter and I started talking about her chances of getting breast cancer when she was 16. To ease her fears, I came up with a list of things she could do to reduce her risk. I offer this list for you to share with your daughter...
 
Tell her to:
• Exercise regularly. Maintain a healthy body mass index (BMI). A BMI of 18.5-24.9 is optimal.
• Eat a low-fat diet. Keep it rich in fruits and veggies. Research suggests that eating an ounce of broccoli sprouts daily may be beneficial.  
• Quit smoking (if she smokes). And avoid secondary smoke. If your boyfriend smokes and won’t quit for you, think about finding a new boyfriend.
• Limit alcohol to one drink a day. Of course, my initial approach was, “If you drink, you’re grounded!” Now that she’s an adult, having a glass of wine with dinner is acceptable.
• Perform monthly breast self-exams. If you aren’t sure how to do this, the two of you should go to a gynecologist or nurse practitioner together and ask for instructions.
• Ask your daughter to tell you if she develops any breast abnormality. If she does, you can take her to the doctor and allay her fears—and yours. 
 
Maintain perspective
Does my daughter worry about breast cancer every day? I don’t think so. And I feel confident in saying she has her concerns in perspective. Do I still worry? Of course. But something happened that helped put my mind at ease. When my daughter was interviewed on a radio program about my breast cancer, she was asked: “Are you frightened of also getting breast cancer one day?” 
 
She answered by saying, “I used to worry about it more when Mom was first diagnosed. I was young then, and just developing breasts. But my mom has shown me how to beat this disease—twice—and I think I could overcome it if I had to. Plus, I watch my weight, don’t smoke, don’t drink, exercise regularly, and keep myself well informed about cutting-edge research related to breast cancer.” 

I hope you teach your daughters to do the same!   

Lillie Shockney, RN, BS, MAS, is the administrative director of the Johns Hopkins Avon Foundation Breast Center. She writes a regular column for Living with Cancer Health Monitor. Ms. Shockney, who is a breast cancer survivor and a healthcare professional, also speaks to audiences across the country and has written books about breast cancer. 
 
Health Monitor
Dec. 2009/Jan. 2010

 


Update: July 8, 2010