Search is Powered by Google
Follow us on:
Follow our health news on Twitter
Follow Our News on Facebook
Personalization
login | register
Breast Cancer News

Wall Street Journal Examines Growing Fear Of Breast Cancer Among Some Young Girls

Main Category: Breast Cancer
Also Included In: Pediatrics / Children's Health
Article Date: 04 Sep 2008 - 8:00 PST

email icon email to a friend   printer icon printer friendly   write icon view / write opinions   rate icon rate article


Current Article Ratings:

Patient / Public:not yet rated

Health Professional:4 stars

4 (1 votes)

Article Opinions: 0 posts

The Wall Street Journal on Tuesday examined the growing fear of breast cancer among some young girls that in part is because of information about the disease from the media.

Marisa Weiss -- director of breast radiation oncology at Lankenau Hospital in Pennsylvania, founder of Breastcancer.org and co-author of the book "Taking Care of Your 'Girls'" -- said that she has noticed that girls are either uninformed or misinformed about breast health. "They are still young girls, without the dialogue skills to ask questions, air their concerns and replace the myths with facts," she said.

According to the Journal, the book, written for girls and teenagers, offers information on topics such as breast development and size, choosing a bra, how to stand up to teasing and healthy foods during adolescence. Throughout the book, Weiss' daughter, Isabel Friedman, also provides advice and tells stories from a peer-to-peer perspective. The book is an extension of an educational program that Weiss and Friedman have been presenting in schools to girls in grades five through 12 and their mothers. During the program, Weiss provides medical information, explaining to the girls that breast cancer is extremely rare in girls younger than age 20 and that only one in 10 cases of breast cancer is thought to be the result of an inherited genetic abnormality. In addition, she describes the steps girls can take to reduce their risk of developing breast cancer, including keeping a healthy weight, exercising and not smoking. She also advises them to maintain a healthy diet, including limiting consumption of red meat and fried foods.

Weiss said that it is especially important for girls to receive this information at ages eight to 18. "That's when they are using food, water, beverages and the air they breathe as building blocks for breast tissue. They are laying down the foundation for future breast health" (Bernstein, Wall Street Journal, 9/2).

Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.nationalpartnership.org. You can view the entire Daily Women's Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery here. The Daily Women's Health Policy Report is a free service of the National Partnership for Women & Families, published by The Advisory Board Company.

© 2008 The Advisory Board Company. All rights reserved.


Personalized Homepage Weekly Newsletters Daily News Alerts
Hemophilia Opioid Induced Constipation Pneumococcal Disease ADHD Anxiety Asthma Atrial Fibrillation Autism Cancer Diabetes Lung Cancer Lupus Medicare / Medicaid Obesity and BMI Pancreatic Cancer Stem Cells All 'What Is...' Articles

Ophthalmology Urology
About Us News Licensing Free Website Feeds Free Tools & Content Tell a Friend Accessibility Help / FAQ Article Submission Links Contact Us

add medical news today to your facebook
medical news gadget

Please fill in our survey

Swine Flu Image

Swine Flu Updates

- Latest Swine Flu News
- What is Swine Flu?
- Map Of H1N1 Outbreaks
- Swine Flu - Top 20 FAQ
- Daily Email News Alerts
Stick with Medical News Today for the latest news updates on swine flu.


These are the most read articles from this news category for the last 6 months:
Top Article Star
Scientists Discover Protein That Stops Cancer Spread
25 Jun 2009
Scientists in the US have discovered that cancer tumors that don't spread to other parts of the body secrete a protein called prosaposin and that metastatic tumors, which do spread, don't secrete much of it...


Stages of Breast Cancer image Stages of Breast Cancer

Breast cancer stages tell us the characteristics of the cancer and if it has spread beyond the breast tissue. Doctors can use this information to guide treatment decisions. Learn how staging is vital in determining next steps...

Early-stage Breast Cancer image Early-stage Breast Cancer

Finding out you have early-stage breast cancer can be overwhelming. But you can get a handle on the disease by learning some very crucial things about your own cancer. Getting the proper tests to determine the stage and characteristics of your cancer can help dictate what treatments are...

View more videos...