The 5 most common cancers affecting women

The most common cancers affecting women are breast, endometrial, cervical, ovarian, lung and skin cancers. Getting diagnosed with cancer is a very unsettling experience for the person suffering from the disease and for their family. Family medical history and lifestyle choices often play a pertinent role in a person's cancer risk. Nonetheless, cultivating healthy lifestyle habits such as quitting smoking or not smoking at all, having a good diet, carrying out physical activity on a regular basis, and controlling one's weight greatly reduce a person's cancer risk. This write up addresses the traits these cancers bear and preventive measures to be taken against them.

1. Breast Cancer

Breast cancer can occur at any age and it is the most common cancer that women may face in their lifetime. A woman's risk for breast cancer increases with age, and one in eight women is diagnosed with breast cancer in a lifetime.

Symptoms of breast cancer include:

• A change in the size or shape of the nipple or breast.
• A change in the appearance of your nipple, such as the nipple becoming sunken into your breast.
• A lump or swelling in either of your armpits.
• The presence of a new lump or area of thickened tissue in either breast.
• The presence of a rash on or around your nipple, and/or nipple discharge.

The American Cancer society recommends the following for early breast cancer detection:

• Women ages 40 to 44 should have the choice to start annual breast cancer screening with mammograms if they wish to do so.
• Women age 45 to 54 should get mammograms every year.
• Women 55 and older should switch to mammograms every 2 years, or can continue yearly screening.
• Screening should continue as long as a woman is in good health and is expected to live at least 10 more years.

Mayo Clinic recommends the following for reducing breast cancer risk.

• Limiting alcohol. The more alcohol you drink, the greater your risk of developing breast cancer. The general recommendation is to limit yourself to less than one drink a day as even small amounts of alcohol increase breast cancer risk.
• Don't smoke. Evidence suggests a link between smoking and breast cancer risk, particularly in pre-menopausal women.
• Control your weight. Being overweight or obese increases the risk of breast cancer. This is especially true if obesity occurs later in life, particularly after menopause.
• Be physically active.
• Physical activity can help you maintain a healthy weight, which helps prevent breast cancer. Most healthy adults should aim for at least 150 minutes a week of moderate aerobic activity or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity weekly, plus strength training at least twice a week.
• Breast-feed. Breast-feeding might play a role in breast cancer prevention. The longer you breast-feed, the greater the protective effect.
• Limit dose and duration of hormone therapy. Combination hormone therapy for more than three to five years increases the risk of breast cancer. If you're taking hormone therapy for menopausal symptoms, ask your doctor about other options. You might be able to manage your symptoms with non-hormonal therapies and medications.
• Avoid exposure to radiation and environmental pollution. 

2. Cervical Cancer

Any woman who is or has been sexually active is at risk for cervical cancer. Cervical cancer occurs in the cells of the cervix, in women who have had the Human Papilloma Virus. The HPV is passed during sex. Most women diagnosed with cervical precancerous changes are in their 20s and 30s, but the average age of women when they are diagnosed with cervical cancer is the mid-50s. Unlike most cancers, cervical cancer evolves slowly through precancerous stages. This provides opportunities for prevention, early detection, and treatment. The most noticeable symptom of cervical cancer is unusual bleeding. Such includes bleeding:

• Between your periods,
• During or after sex,
• After you have been through menopause.

Other symptoms of cervical cancer include:

• Unusual or pleasant vaginal discharge,
• Pain and discomfort during sex,
• Pain in your lower back or pelvis.

Women who have been diagnosed with HPV have a higher risk of developing cervical cancer. Girls who engage in sexual activity within a year of starting their menstrual periods and those who begin sexual activity before age 16 are at high risk of developing cervical cancer. In order to prevent cervical cancer, the American Cancer Society recommends that:

• Cervical cancer testing should start at age 21.
• Women between ages 21 and 29 should have a Pap test done every 3 years.
• Women between the ages of 30 and 65 should have a Pap test plus an HPV test (called "co-testing") done every 5 years.
• Women over age 65 who have had regular cervical cancer in the past 10 years with normal results should not be tested for cervical cancer.
• A woman who has had a total hysterectomy (removal of her uterus and her cervix) for reasons not related to cervical cancer and who has no history of cervical cancer or serious pre-cancer should not be tested.
• A woman who has been vaccinated against HPV should still follow the screening recommendations for her age group.

3. Endometrial Cancer

Also called uterine cancer, endometrial cancer mostly affects postmenopausal women. Endometrial cancer develops in the lining of the uterus. The following factors increase the risk of endometrial cancer:

• Taking the hormone therapy drug Tamoxifen for breast cancer.
• Being obese.
• Presence of estrogen.
• Suffering from endometrial hyperplasia.
• Getting older, as mostly post-menopausal women have endometrial cancer.
• Never having been pregnant increases endometrial cancer risk.
• Starting menstruation at an early age (before 12) or beginning menopause later increases the risk of endometrial cancer, because more periods mean your endometrium gets to have more exposure to estrogen.

Symptoms of endometrial cancer possibly include:

• Abnormal, watery or blood-tinged vaginal discharge,
• Bleeding between periods,
• Vaginal bleeding after menopause,
• Pelvic pain.

A woman can reduce her endometrial cancer risk by:

• Getting pregnant and breastfeeding. Breastfeeding for more than 18 months decreases the risk of endometrial cancer.
• Engaging in physical activity/exercise.
• Taking contraceptives that combine estrogen and progestin. However, women who take oral contraceptives have a higher risk of blood clots, stroke, and heart attack.

4. Ovarian Cancer

Cancer of the ovaries/ovarian cancer is a type of cancer that begins in the ovaries. The ovaries are a pair of almond-sized organs located in the lower belly that are connected to the womb and store a woman's supply of eggs. One in 78 women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer in their lifetimes, and only 15% of ovarian cancer cases are diagnosed in the early stage. The average age at which women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer is 63 years old. Symptoms of ovarian cancer include:

• Pain or discomfort in the pelvis or abdomen,
• A frequent urgent need to urinate,
• Changes in a woman's period, such as irregular bleeding or heavier than normal bleeding,
• Pain during sex,
• Quickly feeling full when eating,
• Abdominal swelling with weight loss.

The following measures reduce a woman's risk for ovarian cancer, though there's no way to prevent ovarian cancer:

• Taking a form of oral birth control for five years or more,
• A history of at least 1 pregnancy,
• Having had tubal ligation (tying of Fallopian tubes),
• Having breastfed,
• Having had a hysterectomy.

5. Lung cancer

Lung cancer is the most preventable type of cancer. Lung cancer begins in the lungs. It is the leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States, among both men and women. Eight out of ten deaths due to lung cancer result from smoking. Notwithstanding, people who do not smoke are also at risk for cancer. The main recommendation for preventing lung cancer is abstaining from smoking. Symptoms of lung cancer include:

• Coughing up phlegm or mucus, especially if tinged with blood
• Coughing up blood
• Persistent or intense coughing
• Pain in the chest, shoulder, or back unrelated to pain from coughing
• A change in color or volume of sputum
• Recurrent bronchitis or pneumonia.

Breast cancer easily spreads to the lymph nodes, bones, brain, liver and adrenal glands. If this occurs, the patient may feel symptoms in other places in the body.