Previous Radiation Treatment - Risk Factors: Breast Cancer
Content provided by the Faculty of the Harvard Medical School
Previous radiation treatment
Women who've had high doses of radiation to the chest before age 30 - usually for Hodgkin's disease - have a significantly increased risk of breast cancer as adults. Radiation received after age 30, however, does not increase risk.
Among women in the younger group, breast cancer is usually detected 10-15 or more years after radiation therapy. A woman who received high-dose radiation therapy should have yearly mammograms and breast exams beginning 10 years after the radiation treatment or beginning at age 35, whichever comes first.
| Last updated: | April 23, 2007 |
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Medical content reviewed by the Faculty of the Harvard Medical School. Harvard Health Publications, Copyright © 2007 by President and Fellows of Harvard College. All rights reserved. Used with permission of StayWell.
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