Radio program on breast cancer

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Tim Jackson - 18 May 2005 19:35 GMT

This week's episode of "Building a Healthier Britain" on BBC Radio 4 was
about breast cancer.

The series discusses epidemiological studies about health and lifestyle.
The episode covers the effect such things as diet, HRT, lifestyle, and
genetics on breast cancer, and how women's lifetime exposure to estrogen
has changed over the centuries.

The program is available online for the next seven days at
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/aod/radio4_aod.shtml?radio4/building_healthier_britain

You will need a version of RealPlayer to listen to this content.
If you do not have it, a free download plug-in is available, which
should automatically link from the above URL.

Tim Jackson

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Mary Fisher - 18 May 2005 22:15 GMT

> This week's episode of "Building a Healthier Britain" on BBC Radio 4 was
> about breast cancer.
[quoted text clipped - 10 lines]
> If you do not have it, a free download plug-in is available, which should
> automatically link from the above URL.

It was very interesting and convincing - until it was said that if a woman
has five or more children and breast feeds for at least ten years she'd be
protected from bc.

I did that :-)

Either my diagnosis was wrong or there are even more influences than excess
oestrogen from its being supressed by child-bearing and lactating.

Longer lives and better nutrition were mentioned - I don't remember hearing
about early menarch, which might certainly have been influential in my case.

It genuinely was very interesting - as long as nobody thinks that the
answers can be explored and given in half an hour - which wasn't implied in
the programme by the way. That's the trouble with journalism generally
although this programme was better than most in my opinion.

Mary

> Tim Jackson

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Tim Jackson - 19 May 2005 08:18 GMT

>>This week's episode of "Building a Healthier Britain" on BBC Radio 4 was
>>about breast cancer.
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
> Either my diagnosis was wrong or there are even more influences than excess
> oestrogen from its being supressed by child-bearing and lactating.

As I recall it said that you would have to do that to -halve- your risk
of bc, not to remove it altogether. And the impression I got was that
the risk factor was total time spent post menarche not pregnant not
lactating. So that implies that an early menarche and long life
increases risk.

There was a comment that 'primitive' woman would not come into menarche
until her 20's (for reasons of poor nutrition etc.) and then would spend
the rest of her relatively short life in continuous childbearing. For
this she would gain a payback of lower breast cancer incidence. They
did not recommend this as a lifestyle.

It did seem to imply that current 'western' levels of breast cancer are
in part a biological response to the social suppression of women's
fecundity. I suppose you could say that it is a price we pay for having
a low rate of infant mortality and long lives while approaching the
limits to population density.

Tim

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Mary Fisher - 19 May 2005 10:12 GMT

>>>This week's episode of "Building a Healthier Britain" on BBC Radio 4 was
>>>about breast cancer.
[quoted text clipped - 11 lines]
> As I recall it said that you would have to do that to -halve- your risk of
> bc, not to remove it altogether.

I think it was nearer total reduction than halving - Spouse heard it too and
his mouth was agape :-)

> And the impression I got was that the risk factor was total time spent
> post menarche not pregnant not lactating. So that implies that an early
> menarche and long life increases risk.

That's what was said.

> There was a comment that 'primitive' woman would not come into menarche
> until her 20's (for reasons of poor nutrition etc.) and then would spend
> the rest of her relatively short life in continuous childbearing. For
> this she would gain a payback of lower breast cancer incidence. They did
> not recommend this as a lifestyle.

No, they specifically said that it would be absolutely impossible to suggest
that today's women should have five children and spend ten years lactating
but there was a definite implication that such a situation would cut bc to
almost nil. That was the only part of the programme I'd question, it could
so easily give the wrong impression and, as you know,people do tend to pick
up on things they want to hear.

Including me.

And even you, perhaps, on occasions :-)

> It did seem to imply that current 'western' levels of breast cancer are in
> part a biological response to the social suppression of women's fecundity.
> I suppose you could say that it is a price we pay for having a low rate of
> infant mortality and long lives while approaching the limits to population
> density.

Everyone needs a hobby <BG>

The most important part of the programme was the insistence on how little is
known about the causes of bc, that's why I approved it.

Mary

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alex - 19 May 2005 00:46 GMT

Listening to it right now, thanks for sharing. Alex

> This week's episode of "Building a Healthier Britain" on BBC Radio 4 was
> about breast cancer.
[quoted text clipped - 12 lines]
>
> Tim Jackson

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