The early epidemic of colon cancer has gripped the country in recent years.
But doctors warn about the emergence of another form of the disease in young people.
A report Today, the American Cancer Society found that breast cancer rates among women under 50 increased by one percent between 2012 and 2021.
And younger white women saw a faster rate of increase – 1.4 percent – than their older counterparts – 0.7 percent.
An even sharper increase was seen among Asian women under the age of 50, who saw breast cancer rates rise by 2.7 percent between 2012 and 2021.
The graph above shows how breast cancer rates have been increasing by one percent each year across all age groups, but slightly faster among women under 50
Olivia Munn revealed she was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 43 and just three months after a mammogram gave her the all clear. She now shares her battle with cancer online
Dr. Karen Knudsen, CEO of the American Cancer Society, told CNN: “If we look at the past decade, we have seen the incidence of breast cancer increase by about one percent year-over-year, and the steepness of that increase is striking in this case not all women equally.
‘There is a slightly higher increase in the number of breast cancer diagnoses in women under 50 years of age than in women over 50 years of age.’
She added: “These are things we are looking at to try to understand.”
Olivia Munn is among women in her 40s to have been diagnosed with the disease after revealing in March that she was diagnosed with cancer last year at the age of 43 – just two months after a mammogram said she was completely clear .
The report, published this week, shows that around 310,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer every year.
Of these, an estimated 13,180 are under the age of 40, while 37,650 are in their 40s.
It was not clear why rates rose in younger women, but Dr Ahmedin Jemal, co-author of the study, said changes in women’s reproductive habits could be behind the shift.
He said more people are delaying having children and having fewer or no children at all. Many also did not breastfeed and also had an earlier period.
Argentinian actress Soledad Fandiño (left) revealed via Instagram on Monday that she is recovering from breast cancer surgery after being diagnosed at the age of 42. Boy Meets World star Danielle Fishel, 43, has also revealed her own breast cancer diagnosis
All of these factors increase a woman’s exposure to estrogen and progesterone, he said New York Timeshormones made by the ovaries that can stimulate cell growth.
Doctors also warned that younger women are often diagnosed with breast cancer later, even though the disease may be more difficult to treat.
Screening for the disease is recommended, but begins at age 40 and continues every two years until age 74.
British mother-of-two Roisin Pelan revealed she was ticking off her bucket list after being diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 42 and told she had only three years to live
The report also shows that although more women are being diagnosed with cancer than ever, the death rate is still falling.
They said it had fallen by around 44 per cent between 1989 and 2022, with women whose cancer was diagnosed later in life more likely to die than their younger peers.
The report found that less than 0.1 percent of women aged 20 to 30 who were diagnosed with cancer died from the disease, but among those over 80 the mortality rate was 1 percent.
It fits into a broader trend of rising cases of colon cancer among young people in the US that has overwhelmed doctors and medical experts.
Rates among people under 50 have risen by about two percent every year since the early 2000s, with the US now having the sixth highest rate of early-onset colon cancer worldwide.
Initially, doctors blamed rising obesity rates and highly processed diets for the rise in colon cancer rates among young adults.
But in recent years, as more cases have emerged in healthy and active individuals and vegetarians, a number have switched countries and have now suggested it could be a common substance – such as a food additive – in the environment.
Former Argentinian actress Soledad Fandiño is using her recent breast cancer diagnosis to raise awareness. The 42-year-old shared a series of photos to her Instagram last Friday of her recovery from surgery and waited until Monday to reveal for the first time that she was recovering from the disease.
Last week, Dr. Maria Abreu, who is on the front lines of the colon cancer crisis, revealed two additives to DailyMail.com that could be behind the rise.
The first was high fructose corn syrup, a liquid sweetener widely used in the US and other countries that has found its way into many healthy products because it is cheaper than sugar.
And the other was emulsifiers, which were used to give foods a creamy texture and are often found in healthy foods such as low-fat yogurt, cottage cheese and peanut butter.
Breast cancer is a condition that occurs when cells in the breast begin to divide uncontrollably, and more than one in ten women are diagnosed at some point in their lives.
Early warning signs include a new lump on the breast or forearm, a thickening or swelling in the breast, and changes in shape or size.
Treatment may include surgery to cut out the cancer or chemotherapy to eradicate cancer cells from other parts of the body.
