Dr. Weiss on Breast Cancer Prevention Awareness

Marisa Weiss, MD, breast oncologist, Lankenau Medical Center, founder of Breastcancer.org, discusses women’s understanding of breast cancer prevention.

While there’s a huge level of awareness of breast cancer, Weiss says, the knowledge about breast cancer is very minimal. Weiss’ team surveyed women across the country, asking them what they think causes breast cancer. Forty-five percent of the women surveyed thought that breast cancer is mostly due to family history and inherited genes.

The truth is, Weiss says, is that about only 10% of breast cancer cases are due to rare genes like BRCA1 or BRCA2. The remaining 90% of breast cancer cases are mostly related to how one leads their life.

By educating women to the fact that only 10% of breast cancer cases are caused by genetics, Weiss hopes that women will start to become more knowledgeable about what they can do to lower their risk of breast cancer.