More young women are getting breast cancer

MPR News with Angela Davis

Imagine getting a phone call that changes your life. A phone call that says: “You have breast cancer.”

One in eight women in the U.S. will get that call at some point. The median age at diagnosis is 62.

But breast cancer diagnoses are on the rise for women under 40. And a cancer diagnosis in your 20s or 30s is typically more aggressive. It’s more likely to come back. You’re more likely to die.

MPR News with Angela Davis revisits a conversation she had earlier this year about breast cancer. The conversation covers the medical discoveries that have made breast cancer increasingly survivable, the mysteries that continue to make it the second-leading cause of cancer death in women and the challenges that come with survivorship.

Guests:

• Laura Gutierrez is a breast cancer survivor who was diagnosed in 2021. She lives in Blaine.

• Melissa Sherman is a medical oncologist and hematologist with Health Partners.

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Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.