Many people are having conversations about breast cancer with October being awareness month, including Emergency Medicine Physician Dr. Dylan Wyatt.

“It’s the second most common cancer amongst the American general women population. And for women of color, Black, and Hispanic women, it is the most common cause of cancer deaths,” Dr. Wyatt said.

He said 1 in 8 women will get breast cancer in their lifetime, and early detection is key.

“Stage 1 detection, so when it’s localized and hasn’t spread has a very, very, very good long-term survival rate,” Wyatt said. “The further it spreads, the harder it is to treat effectively.”

Genetics also play a role.

“It’s really important for people to know their family history in general, but especially for breast cancer,” he said. “There are genetic markers that can be tracked and even you can do blood tests for them for breast cancer. And so you can know if – for instance, if your mother or grandmother had breast cancer, you should probably be tested for these markers to ensure you don’t have this increased risk because you may be recommended to start screening earlier.”

His own mother is a 10-year breast cancer survivor, so he encouraged that there are many good stories that can come after a breast cancer diagnosis.