Data show ‘alarming’ rise in invasive breast cancer cases among younger women
New data show an “alarming” rise in invasive breast cancer cases among younger women, RSNA reports.
Between 20% to 24% of all breast cancers diagnosed during a decade-long period were found in women between the ages of 18 to 49. That’s according to an analysis of outcomes across seven outpatient facilities in the New York state region.
The findings were presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America on Dec. 1. Of the nearly 1,800 cases diagnosed in this group, about 81% were invasive, the study found.
“This is striking because it shows that younger women not only carry a stable and substantial share of the breast cancer burden, but their tumors are often biologically aggressive,” Stamatia Destounis, MD, with Elizabeth Wende Breast Care LLC in Rochester, New York, said in a Dec. 1 announcement from RSNA. “That combination—steady incidence plus disproportionately aggressive biology—directly challenges age-based screening cutoffs and strengthens the case for earlier, risk-tailored screening approaches.”
The study pinpointed all women ages 18 to 49 diagnosed with breast cancer at facilities covering a 200-mile radius across Western New York between 2014 to 2024. Altogether, there were 1,799 cases diagnosed among 1,290 women. Annual diagnoses in this group ranged from 145 to 195, with an average patient age of 42.6 (and range of 23 to 49). Of these, 41% were detected on screening and 59% on diagnostic evaluation, according to the study abstract. About 19% of cases were identified as non-invasive.
Currently, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends regular screening starts at age 40. Destounis and colleagues believe their findings signal the need for vigilance among women who aren’t yet eligible, especially if they have a predisposition for the disease. The numbers stayed stable over the study period, signaling this problem “is not going away,” she added.
“We can’t rely only on age alone to decide who should be screened,” she said in the announcement. “Paying closer attention to personal and family history, and possibly screening earlier for some women, could help detect these cancers sooner.”
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.