How common is breast cancer in young women?
In the breast cancer world, a generally accepted definition of 'young' is women under 50 years of age (though we know many women over 50 who would still consider themselves to be young!). Young women who have experienced breast cancer have further divided 'young women' into two groups: those under 35 years (the very young) and those 35 to 49 years. These two groups share some similar concerns and may also have different issues depending on where they are at in their life at the time of diagnosis.
The latest figures from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare are for 2001 (as it takes a few years to collate and analyse the data).
Age group Number of women diagnosed % of all women diagnosed
20 to 34 yrs 226 2%
35 to 49 yrs 2,596 22%
50 yrs + 9,064 76%
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