Doctors in the national Capital claimed that breast cancer is rapidly increasing among younger women in India, with more than 40 per cent of the patients now below 50 years of age.
"Till as early as 10 years back, breast cancer was largely considered a disease of elderly women. In fact, age is still considered a major risk factor for breast cancer across the world. However, this medical belief is now on shaky ground with the changing features of the disease being manifested in patients today. Unlike a decade back when most women patients diagnosed with breast cancer were above 50, today more women under 50 years of age are being diagnosed with the disease," said Dr Ajay Sharma, Consultant Medical Oncologist, Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute.
Sharma blamed urban lifestyle factors for the rise in incidence of breast cancer. Among the causes for the surge are increasing obesity, urban lifestyle, lack of exercise, delayed age of childbearing and reduced breastfeeding. "The rampant night club culture in cities like Bangalore which promotes unhealthy eating, excessive smoking and drinking indulgences are all contributory factors…The epidemiology of Indian patients is emerging as different from those in the West, where breast cancer is still more prevalent in older women."
"It has also been observed that cancers in younger women are typically more aggressive which do not respond to common therapies and have more chances of relapsing. Women diagnosed at a younger age also are more likely to have a mutated BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes which present poor prognosis," he added.
The doctor also added that there is imminent need for more cancer registry centers in the State to gauge the true extent of the problem.