What is the cure rate for breast cancer?

  Breast cancer is one of the more treatable cancers, whether detected early or in the middle or late stages. As early as 1981, the World Health Organization made the assessment of “three thirds”. In other words, one-third of the causes of cancer can be avoided, one-third of cancer patients can be cured if detected early, and one-third of patients with no hope of cure can have their symptoms alleviated by palliative care. Palliative care refers to active, careful and comprehensive medical care for patients whose diseases have failed to be treated.  More than 30 years later, scientific advances have proven the WHO assessment to be correct by giving doses of sedatives to patients with severe cancer to reduce their suffering and eventually allow them to die peacefully and naturally. Moreover, breast cancer is one of the malignancies identified by the World Health Organization as one that can reduce mortality through early diagnosis. Despite the global spread of industrialization and post-industrial lifestyles, which have dramatically increased the incidence of breast cancer, the cure rate for breast cancer has increased even more.  With early detection and evidence-based treatment, the cure rate for breast cancer can now be as high as 90 to 95 percent. Even in the case of late detection of mid- to late-stage breast cancer, the cure rate can reach 30% to 50% with reasonable and regular treatment. In terms of quality of life, the 10-year survival rate of in situ breast cancer is as high as 99% in some places, 93% for stage I breast cancer, and 81% for stage II breast cancer. Of course, it is important to emphasize that breast cancer treatment, like other cancer treatments, requires standardized treatment and systematic adjuvant therapy based on evidence-based medicine. Universal screening, early diagnosis and standardized treatment are now the main reasons for the decline in breast cancer mortality.  Follow-up data of 1,000 breast cancer patients show that the 5-year survival rate for stage I and II breast cancer is 94% and 83%, and the 10-year survival rate is 87% and 67%. In other words, although breast cancer is the first or second most common malignant tumor in women, most of the patients are not life threatening after timely treatment, and the earlier the detection, the better the treatment. On the other hand, even by quality of life measure, 51% of the patients were able to keep their breasts, which is an important aspect to enhance their faith in life.  How can breast cancer be prevented?  Breast cancer has always been the “public enemy number one” of women, and the age of onset is getting younger. The high incidence of breast cancer is not only related to the physiological structure of women, but also the popular “two not one night” of urban women, i.e. “not having children, having children too late and not breastfeeding after having children”, and the westernized lifestyle, such as high fat and protein intake, excessive alcohol consumption and obesity. These are all risk factors for breast cancer. At the same time, environmental pollution is also a trigger for breast cancer. In addition, high estrogen level is not good for breast cancer prevention. Studies have proven that women who have given birth have lower plasma and urinary estrogen levels than in infertile women, and the lowered estrogen levels are a protective factor for the breast.  Nutritionists have found that the occurrence of breast cancer in women is strongly related to diet. Soy foods, dates, garlic, and wheat bran are highly beneficial in preventing breast cancer. Vegetables such as cauliflower, fennel, spinach, winter squash, chard, carrots and tomatoes can significantly reduce the incidence of breast cancer in premenopausal women. In addition, vegetable oils such as peanut oil, corn oil, canola oil and soybean oil contain a large amount of unsaturated fatty acids, which can protect premenopausal women from breast cancer, so experts suggest that women should consciously consume more vegetable oils in general.