Breast Health Supplement Suggestions

 The key strategy in the primary prevention of any disease is to reduce risk factors linked to the disease while simultaneously utilizing those dietary and lifestyle factors associated with breast cancer prevention. While many women are on a multivitamin, it is worth considering a regimen of supplements more specific to the breast. You can start with one, or a combination of these supplements.

 1. Privita has been ORAC tested by Brunswick Labs Estrogen stimulates the normal growth of breast tissue and is naturally produced by the body. It is suspected that excess estrogen may contribute to breast cancer risk because of its natural role in stimulating breast cell growth. Removal of a woman's ovaries (artificial menopause), and the estrogen that ovaries produce, clearly reduces her risk for breast cancer. But there are other ways to decrease risk without surgery. Aromatase inhibitors stop the production of estrogen in post-menopausal women. Aromatase inhibitors work by blocking the enzyme aromatase, which turns the hormone androgen into small amounts of estrogen in the body. This means that less estrogen is available to stimulate the growth of hormone-receptor-positive breast cancer cells. Privita is a natural aromatase inhibitor and estrogen blocker formula that contains many ingredients that have been studied for breast cancer.

 Includes Resveratrol, Pomegranate, DIM, Green Tea, Grape seed Extract, Astralagus, Chamomile, Quercetin, Reishi Mushroom, Turmeric and Nutgrass in the formula
  Resveratrol, found in red wine, keeps estrogen from causing breast cancer in test-tube studies. Prolonged exposure to estrogen is a major risk factor for breast cancer. When the body's system for processing estrogen gets out of balance, dangerous estrogen metabolites appear. These toxic compounds react with DNA in breast cells and jump-start the growth of tumors. Now Eleanor G. Rogan, PhD, and colleagues at the University of Nebraska show that resveratrol decreases the processing of estrogen into these dangerous compounds.
  Chrysin Found in the herb Passiflora incarnata, the flavone chrysin is a potent natural aromatase inhibitor. In a study published 1993 chrysin and 10 other flavonoids were compared to an aromatase-inhibiting drug (aminoglutethimide). Chrysin was the most potent aromatase-inhibitor, and was shown to be similar in potency and effectiveness to the aromatase-inhibiting drug.
  Dim (Di-Indoly Methane). These compounds, found in cruciferous vegetables like cabbage, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, collards and broccoli, help to transform dangerous estrogen into more benign forms, as recognized by the National Cancer Institute.
  Quercetin  Research has suggested that quercetin has other anti-cancer benefits aside from inhibiting aromatase in breasts and prostates.
  Pomegranate seed extract works as an aromatase inhibitor. Lansky with a group of Korean researchers in 2002 had already shown that his various pomegranate fractions could lower aromatase activity by 70-80%. Aromatase inhibitors suppress the production of estrogens. If you have hormone dependent breast cancer this is certainly a worthwhile goal. Preventing estrogen formation has its downside though. Without estrogen, bone density rapidly declines increasing the risk of osteoporosis and bone fractures. Pomegranates contain estrogen like chemicals and these may be enough to prevent osteoporosis. At least this is true in mice. In May 2004, Japanese researchers published a study on mice in which they had surgically removed the ovaries. Treating them with pomegranate extracts increased their bone volumes.

 2. Protective Breast Formula™ It supports breast tissue health in 5 ways.† Protective Breast Formula™ supports hormonal balance, detoxification, immune support, free-radical defense and natural anti-inflammatory response.†Each ingredient provides demonstrated breast health support.†The natural immune boosters and antioxidants in Protective Breast Formula™ include: Indoplex® Complex with DIM®, green tea extract, maitake D-fraction, turmeric, vitamin D3 cholecalciferol, and grape seed extract. When used in conjunction with a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle choices, these ingredients provide superior support for breast tissue health.

 3. Myomin There are two ways to block the action of estrogen. One is by attaching to its receptors (selective estrogen receptor modulation). This stops the signaling that triggers cell division in target tissues. Another method is aromatase inhibition, which reduces estrogen production by blocking its conversion from androstenedione and testosterone. Myomin - 120 caps,(Chi's Enterprise) is an all-natural herbal formula that can perform both functions. It contains Aralia, Smilax glabra, Curcurma zedoria, and Cyperus rotundus.

 4. Vitamin D in order for vitamin D to have an anticancer effect, one needs to maintain 40 to 60 ng/mL serum vitamin D. Usually 5000 IU to 10,000 IU daily will be necessary.

 5.Coenzyme Q10 and Fish Oil- Coenzyme Q10 is low in patients with many disease including cancer. Given its function as an antioxidant, there is good reason to believe that CoQ10 may also help fight many kinds of cancer

The statements and products referred to throughout this site have not been evaluated by the FDA. They are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease or condition. If you have a health condition or concern, consult a physician or your alternative health care provider. Always consult a medical doctor before modifying your diet, using any new product, drug, or supplement.  

Breast Thermography awareness

According to the National Cancer Institute, there were 192,370 new cases of breast cancer in females and 1,910 cases in males in 2009. That year, 40,170 women and 440 men died from breast cancer. The World Health Organization reports that breast cancer accounts for 16 percent of the cancer deaths of women globally.


Breast thermography is a state-of-the-art screening procedure that captures images of the breast to aid in the early detection of breast irregularities. According to the American Journal of Surgery, it “is a valuable adjunct to mammography and ultrasound, especially in women with dense breast parenchyma.”


It is based on the principle of temperature variation, the slight increase in heat that is almost always generated when chemical and blood vessel activity occurs in pre-cancerous tissue and the areas surrounding a developing breast cancer. Images are captured with ultra-sensitive infra-red cameras and analyzed with sophisticated computers that seek to detect the minute increases in surface temperature and vascular changes that may be occurring within the breast. It is comfortable and safe, using neither radiation nor compression.


Breast thermographic technology has been researched for over 30 years. It has, however, been gaining national prominence and more widespread use only recently, due to the publicity received by radiation-based screening technologies in the guidelines issued by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the Federal Government. It should not, however, be considered an alternative to mammography. Rather, it should be regarded as an adjunct to mammography, and should be offered in every woman’s regular breast health regimen. Women of all ages should employ a combination of techniques, including breast self-examination, physical examinations of the breast by a physician, thermography, mammography, HALO breast pap and sometimes ultrasound or MRI examinations, where indicated. Studies have shown that the earliest detection generally occurs when several test techniques are used in combination. The inclusion of thermography can often point out the need for more intensive examination to make a complete diagnosis.


There are more than 800 peer-reviewed breast thermography studies, in which over 250,000 women participated. Many of these studies involved very large groups of patients (from 37,000 to over 100,000) and some have followed patients for as much as 12 years. Among other conclusions, these studies found that when thermography has been added to a woman’s regular breast health checkups, a 61% increased survival rate was realized, and when used as part of a multi-modal approach (clinical examination, mammography and thermography) 95% of early stage cancers will be detected. Since 23% of all breast cancers occur in women under the age of 49, regular breast health checkups should be undertaken by women of all ages, even those in their 20’s. It is well known that early detection is the best defense against breast cancer and that, if treated in the earliest stages, a 95% cure rate is achieved.


For optimal breast health, mammography alone may not be enough. There are additional tools for breast health screening: thermography and Halo breast pap. Halo breast pap tests for the presence of abnormal fluid in the breast ducts. The test consists of five minutes on a modified breast pump to attempt to obtain fluid. If there is any fluid present, it will be sent for further testing. The test can detect early cellular changes within the breast ducts, the area where more than 90% of breast cancer begins. Each of these tests can be provided to women of any age who are not pregnant or breast-feeding.

What to do if you are at increased risk?

Aromatase is an enzyme produced in the body that is needed for the final step in the production of estrogen as part of the hormonal cascade during which hormones are made from other hormones in a series of conversions. This enzyme converts androgen to estrogen. Aromatase is expressed at a higher level in breast cancer tissue than in benign tissue. Estrogen biosynthesis can be suppressed by the prevention of aromatase expression in breast tumors or by the inhibition of aromatase activity. Without the aromatase enzyme, excessive production of estrogen stalls. This process is what makes aromatase inhibitors effective against hormone-sensitive tumor growth.

High estrogen levels are a well-known risk for breast cancer. Many breast cancers depend on estrogen to grow. In fact, seventy per cent of diagnosed breast cancers express Estrogen Receptor alpha (ER{alpha}) and are, therefore, likely to be hormone-responsive. Apart from commercial and synthetic aromatase inhibitors, where can you find natural sources of such inhibitors?

Natural aromatase inhibitors include flavonoids, flavones, flavanones, isoflavones, resveratrol, oleuropein and linoleic acid. These are healing foods for breast cancer and other hormone-sensitive diseases.
Quercetin, Resveratrol, and Chrysin are found in PriVita, a natural aromatase inhibitor for breast health.
If you do have risk factors for breast cancer, consider a natural supplement.

Options for screening Dense Breasts

Henda's Law Early in 2011 the Texas Legislature passed a law, House Bill 2102, which went into effect September 1, 2011. The law is known as Henda’s Law. It is named after Henda Salmeron, a Dallas realtor and breast cancer survivor who was instrumental in organizing the effort to draft and pass the legislation in Texas. The law requires mammography providers to notify their patients with dense breast tissue that their mammogram may be less accurate than that of women with lower breast density. The law’s intent is to make women with dense breast tissue aware that, in addition to their annual mammogram, they may benefit from “supplemental screening” such as breast ultrasound or MRI, especially if the woman has additional risk factors for breast cancer.




Getting smart about being dense can help in early cancer detection.  Mammograms are one of the most effective tools in detecting breast cancer. In women with dense or nonfatty tissue, however, detection can be difficult and additional screening may be needed.

One Dallas woman’s personal battle with breast cancer was the inspiration for Henda’s Law – a state law signed into effect June 17 that requires women to be informed about their breast tissue’s density and the limitations of mammography in certain cases. Dr. Roshni Rao, assistant professor of surgery at UT Southwestern Medical Center, was Henda Salmeron’s breast surgeon whose work helped drive passage of the law.

“Breast tissue that has minimal or no fat may appear white, or dense, on a mammogram. This sometimes makes it difficult to identify cancers, which also typically appear as small white spots,” says Dr. Rao.

Radiologists use a grading system to describe the density of breast tissue based on the amount of fat (nondense) and connective (dense) tissue. Research is ongoing as to why some women have denser breast tissue but generally, as women age, their breast tissue becomes more fatty.

“Many factors contribute to a woman’s risk of breast cancer. Having dense breast tissue may be one of them, but your doctor considers other factors when evaluating your risk and tailoring your screening program,” Dr. Rao says.

Those factors may include the age at which you had your first child, family history of cancer or your age at the onset of menstruation, among others.

 Starting at age 20, a yearly breast exam by a doctor is recommended. Every woman older than 40 should get screened annually. For women with dense breast tissue, digital mammograms may be better at finding cancer. Other tests – breast magnetic resonance imaging, ultrasound and breast thermography – also may be helpful, but only when added to mammogram results.

 Additional screening tools include:
 • Magnetic Resonance Imaging involves the use of magnets and computers to create three-dimensional images of the breasts. The scan can reveal masses and is sensitive enough to detect increased vascularization (blood vessel formation) that feeds tumors. This test can also detect tumors in dense breast tissue. They are not a first-line method of screening due to their cost.
• The HALO Breast Pap is a noninvasive, five-minute test that analyzes breast fluid for abnormal or precancerous cells. The HALO test may be able to help determine breast cancer risks up to seven years before traditional exams would detect a lump. The HALO is recommended for both young and middle aged women (25-60). A new technology not yet well known, the HALO test is FDA approved and not covered by the majority of insurance companies, but may be reimbursed or covered by flexible spending or Health Savings accounts. Call 832-237-4200 to schedule
 • Breast Ultrasound is a noninvasive and painless procedure that uses sound waves to make a picture of the tissues inside the breast. Ultrasound is excellent at detecting and discriminating between tumors and benign cysts (fluid pockets). This method is also able to scan the whole breast instead of imaging the breast in sections. Ultrasound is particularly helpful for women who have dense breast tissue. This is because dense tissue and cancer both tend to show up as the same color on a mammogram, but are easily discernable in an ultrasound (cancer is dark and dense tissue white).

• Thermal Imaging examines changes in the temperature and blood vessels of the breasts which show signs of possible cancer or pre-cancerous cell growth. Thermal Imaging can screen for cancer and notice physiological changes years before most other screening methods. This technology is painless and includes no bodily contact. In contrast to all the other tests, thermographic studies look at the function of the body, not its structure and therefore take an entirely different approach to detection of abnormalities. Breast Thermography is FDA approved and not covered by the majority of insurance companies, but may be reimbursed or covered by flexible spending or Health Savings accounts. Every type of breast tissue can be imaged – dense, fibrous, implants young or pre/post menopausal- with this non-invasive, painless radiation-free medical device.Call 832-237-4200 to schedule

•

Breast Self Exam is an exam that women perform themselves. First a physician will teach how to perform the exam and what specifically to look for. The breast self-exam includes looking at and feeling one’s breasts to detect any changes or lumps.



 BREAST DENSITY FACTS
• 2/3 of pre-menopausal and ¼ of post menopausal women have dense breast tissue
• Cancer is 5 times more likely in women with extremely dense breasts
• A mammogram will find only 48% of tumors in women with the densest breasts (and therefore elude early detection)
• Breast density is one of the strongest predictors of the failure of mammography screening to detect cancer
• Cancer recurrence is four times more likely in women with dense breasts If a mammogram is supplemented with an ultrasound or MRI, tumor detection rate increases at least 30%


 Test yourself for Familial or Sporadic Breast Cancers

Most cases of breast and ovarian cancer happen by chance and are not caused by an inherited mutated gene. For assessing the risk of sporadic (non-familial) breast cancer, there is the BREVAGen test. By combining both clinical risk factors with an individual’s genetic markers, BREVAGen provides a 5 year and lifetime percentage risk of developing breast cancer. BREVAGen™ is a first-in-class predictive risk test for sporadic breast cancer.
As a noninvasive oral swab test, BREVAGen is very easy to use in the clinic setting. The BREVAGen™ test provides information about breast cancer risk; it does not diagnose breast cancer

• BREVAGen is currently validated in Caucasian women of European descent 35 years of age or older • The risk estimate used in this test does not take into account several other breast cancer risk factors, such as an extensive family history of breast and ovarian cancer 

• This test is used for clinical purposes http://brevagen.com/home 

However, when several members of a family have developed the same type of cancer, or when individuals develop cancer at an unusually young age (less than 50), it is natural to question whether an inherited factor is involved. Having a mutation of the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene increases the risk of breast cancer far more than does any other known risk factor for this disease.
BRCA genetic mutation
• Causes about 10% of breast and ovarian cancer
• Substantially increases your risk for developing breast and ovarian cancer, often before the age of 50
 • Is most often due to a mutation, or alteration, in either of 2 genes: BRCA1 and BRCA2
• Can be inherited from either your father or your mother
• Can be passed on to your children if you have it





If you have painful tender breasts, try an herbal supplement to reduce symptoms before your appointment for breast imaging studies.

An aromatase inhibitor/estrogen blocker formula may decrease the estrogen stimulation of breasts and make imaging the breast easier if breast stimulation and inflammation is the issue . This formula contains many aromatase inhibiting compounds, including green tea, pomegranate, resveratrol, turmeric, and astralagus.


The statements and products shown on this website have not been evaluated by the US Food and Drug Administration. 

These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.