Breast cancer facts and statistics
Every year nearly 60,000 people are diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK. That’s the equivalent of one person every 10 minutes.
1 in 8 women in the UK will develop breast cancer in their lifetime.
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the UK.
Nearly 12,000 people die from breast cancer in the UK every year.
More than eight out of 10 (85%) people survive breast cancer beyond five years.
1 in 7 women aged 50-70 who attend routine mammograms never check their breasts for signs of cancer outside these appointments.
Breast cancer also affects men, but it’s rare – around 340 men are diagnosed each year.
The three main risk factors:
- Gender – being a woman is the biggest risk factor for developing breast cancer
- Getting older – the older the person the higher the risk, more than 80% of breast cancers occur in women over the age of 50. Most men who get breast cancer are over 60
- Significant family history – this isn’t common, around 5% of people diagnosed with breast cancer have inherited a faulty BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene
How do I check my breasts?
Look for:
- Redness or a rash on the skin and/or around the nipple
- A change in size or shape
- Discharge (liquid) that comes from the nipple without squeezing
- A swelling in your armpit or around your collarbone
- A lump or thickening that feels different from the rest of the breast tissue
- Your nipple becoming inverted (pulled in) or changing its position or shape
- Constant pain in your breast or your armpit
- A change in skin texture such as puckering or dimpling (like orange skin)
Information and images from Breast Cancer Care
