Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsWhy It OccursSymptomsCauses and Risk FactorsDiagnosisTreatmentProtecting FertilityPrognosis
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Why It Occurs
Symptoms
Causes and Risk Factors
Diagnosis
Treatment
Protecting Fertility
Prognosis
Premenopausal breast cancer, also known as early-onset breast cancer, is not as rare as some people believe, and the prevalence is increasing.Younger women who developbreast cancerare more likely to have more advanced, more aggressive, and harder-to-treat types of breast cancer compared to those diagnosed in postmenopausal women.Treatment for women of child-bearing age may also be different than methods recommended for older women.
An important part of treatment for young women, like older women with breast cancer, is to seek support and care for your emotional as well as your physical needs while going through treatment.
Approximately 4% of breast cancers occur in women under 40.
Types of Breast Cancer in Young Women
Certain types of breast cancer are more common in younger women than in women who’ve gone through menopause:
How Common Is Premenopausal Breast Cancer?In the United States, about 20% of breast cancers are diagnosed in women under 50, most of whom are premenopausal.In other nations, the rates among younger women are higher.
How Common Is Premenopausal Breast Cancer?
In the United States, about 20% of breast cancers are diagnosed in women under 50, most of whom are premenopausal.In other nations, the rates among younger women are higher.
In general, young women are likely to experience the same breast cancer symptoms as older women do.
Since routine mammogram screenings are not recommended for most women under 40, cancer may be diagnosed late.That means that the cancer is likely to be larger and more advanced when it’s detected in young women.
Verywell / Nusha Ashjaee
All cancer develops when abnormal cells begin to grow out of control. It isn’t clear what specifically might cause this to happen in women who haven’t reached menopause.
However, there are several knownrisk factorsfor early-onset breast cancer, including:
Factors that maylowera younger woman’s risk of breast cancer include:
Women with an average risk of breast cancer are encouraged to begin annual mammograms starting at age 40. For those at high risk, though, mammograms should start at age 25.
Without the screening, breast cancer breast cancer is likely to progress before being found.Signs of cancer may not be detected until alumpis felt either accidentally (while showering, for example) or during abreast self-exam (BSE).
By the time a breast lump is large enough to feel, cancer is likely to have reached stage 2 or stage 3. Staging is a system used to describe how advanced cancer is.
Thetreatmentfor early-onset breast cancer will depend in large part on the type of cancer it is.
Breast Cancer Doctor Discussion GuideGet our printable guide for your next doctor’s appointment to help you ask the right questions.Download PDFEmail AddressSign UpThank you, {{form.email}}, for signing up.There was an error. Please try again.
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For women aged 60 to 69, the five-year survival rate after a breast cancer diagnosis is 92%, but it drops to 85% for women aged 15 to 39.
The survival rate for women under 40 is worse because early-onset breast cancer tends to be more aggressive and it is often more advanced when it’s diagnosed.
Summary
Breast cancer in younger women can be especially aggressive and hard to treat. Younger women are likely to be diagnosed later than older women, so their disease may be more advanced.
Early-onset breast cancer also involves unique challenges, as women who develop it are of child-bearing age and so must consider how treatment might affect fertility.
12 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Bardia A, Hurvitz S.Targeted Therapy for Premenopausal Women with HR+, HER2- Advanced Breast Cancer: Focus on Special Considerations and Latest Advances.Clin Cancer Res. 2018;24(21):5206-5218. doi:10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-18-0162
The Institute of Cancer Research.Premenopausal breast cancer – the challenge of research to help young women.
Susan G. Komen.Unique Issues for Young Women with Breast Cancer.
Penn Medicine.Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC).
American Cancer Society.Breast cancer signs and symptoms.
Center for Disease Control and Prevention.Breast Cancer Risk Factors.
American Cancer Society.Can I Lower My Risk of Breast Cancer?
University of Chicago Medicine.Understanding the new National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines on breast cancer screening.
American Cancer Society.Cancer prevention and early detection facts and figures 2021-2022.
Rocca WA, Gazzuola-Rocca L, Smith CY, et al.Accelerated accumulation of multimorbidity after bilateral oophorectomy: a population-based cohort study.Mayo Clin Proc.2016 Nov; 91(11): 1577-89. doi:10.1016/j.mayocp.2016.08.002
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Anastasiadi Z, Lianos GD, Ignatiadou E, Harissis HV, Mitsis M.Breast cancer in young women: an overview.Updates Surg. 2017 Sep;69(3):313-317. doi: 10.1007/s13304-017-0424-1. Epub 2017 Mar 4.Martino ML, Lemmo D, Gargiulo A, Barberio D, Abate V, Avino F, et al.Under fifty Women and Breast Cancer: Narrative Markers of Meaning-Making in Traumatic Experience.Front Psychol. 2019 Mar 26;10:618. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00618. eCollection 2019.Mutonga M, Speedy S, Rademaker A, Liu D, Uthe R, Jain S, et al.Relationship of pathological features and a 21 gene expression assay in younger versus older women with node-negative endocrine receptor-positive breast cancer.Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2019 Apr 11. doi: 10.1007/s10549-018-05088-6. [Epub ahead of print]
Anastasiadi Z, Lianos GD, Ignatiadou E, Harissis HV, Mitsis M.Breast cancer in young women: an overview.Updates Surg. 2017 Sep;69(3):313-317. doi: 10.1007/s13304-017-0424-1. Epub 2017 Mar 4.
Martino ML, Lemmo D, Gargiulo A, Barberio D, Abate V, Avino F, et al.Under fifty Women and Breast Cancer: Narrative Markers of Meaning-Making in Traumatic Experience.Front Psychol. 2019 Mar 26;10:618. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00618. eCollection 2019.
Mutonga M, Speedy S, Rademaker A, Liu D, Uthe R, Jain S, et al.Relationship of pathological features and a 21 gene expression assay in younger versus older women with node-negative endocrine receptor-positive breast cancer.Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2019 Apr 11. doi: 10.1007/s10549-018-05088-6. [Epub ahead of print]
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