TRUMBULL, Conn. (WTNH) — October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. During this Yale New Haven Health Check, Connecticut’s Morning Buzz Reporter Jillian Andrews spoke with Dr. Monica Valero, a breast surgeon at Bridgeport Hospital and Smilow Cancer Hospital about this form of cancer.

“The rate of breast cancer in the United States is about 12 to 13 percent, meaning 1 in 8 women will develop breast cancer during their lifetime,” Dr. Valero said.

Breast Cancer is the most commonly diagnosed form of cancer in the US. Dr. Valero said screening is moving from an age-related recommendation to a risk-related recommendation for certain patients.

“So we know some women are going to be at higher risk of developing breast cancer in the future and they have a different type of recommendation in terms of screening. But for the overall population we recommend and follow are the NCCN Guidelines, which are to start with mammograms at age 40,” Dr. Valero said.

Risk factors can be based on family history or personal history. The teams at Bridgeport Hospital and Smilow Cancer Hospital take a multidisciplinary approach to care for patients.

“So the best way to determine the treatment for breast cancer is to assess the patient as a whole and to understand what type of cancer the patient has to determine the type of treatment they’re going to have and we meet as a multidisciplinary team to really identify a tailored treatment for each patient,” Dr. Valero said.

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