Breast Cancer Rates By State (2008)

Options

Comments

  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited June 2012

    Very interesting!  There seems to be no rhyme or reason to which states are higher or lower that I can see.  I live in AZ with the lowest rates.  Guess I drew the short straw!

  • curveball
    curveball Member Posts: 3,040
    edited June 2012

    another interesting thing is that some states (including my state, WA) are in the highest category for incidence, but the lowest for death, while others, like Louisiana, are in the lowest category for incidence but the highest for breast cancer death. I wonder what could be causing that....

  • Infobabe
    Infobabe Member Posts: 1,083
    edited June 2012

    My state, Michigan is among the lowest for incidence but the highest for mortality.  I too believe it is attributable to those in poverty.  Sad, because the lowest incidence should be the losest mortality.

     I note that Utah is among the lowest incidence and mortality.  the Mormons don't drink alcohol or caffeine or smoke.  A cleaner life style has a lot to do with it. 

  • mkkjd60
    mkkjd60 Member Posts: 583
    edited June 2012

    I am also struck by the fact that if you move back from the map, you see that so many of the "good" states are southern.  Vitamin D from the sun?  Maybe.  Very sure it's not that simple.

  • cp418
    cp418 Member Posts: 7,079
    edited June 2012

    NE and MN really stick out and wondering why.  Toxic super fund sites are certainly associated with toxicity and pollution seen on east coast.

    http://toxmap.nlm.nih.gov/toxmap/main/index.jsp

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Superfund_sites_in_the_United_States

  • doxie
    doxie Member Posts: 1,455
    edited June 2012

    The midwest may have higher incidences of bc because "progressive farmers" liberally used and use pesticides and herbicides.  This has been going on for decades.  Where I grew up in Kansas, we were warned to not catch snow in our tongues because of nuclear fallout from the Nevada test sites.  It was rare to eat much that was not locally grown and produced.  I've come across articles and maps showing these states as hot spots for cancer and this was attributed to agricultural practices.  

  • maize
    maize Member Posts: 184
    edited June 2012

    There is some mention of Vitamin D, especially D3, as a cancer preventative.

    Vitamin D-3 for Cancer Treatment & Prevention
    http://www.livestrong.com/article/446500-vitamin-d-3-for-cancer-treatment-prevention/

    There seems to be debate about whether or not it is helpful.  In a book I read, a doctor recommends Vitamin D, aspirin (if you can take aspirin) and getting plenty of sunshine as helpful in preventing some types of cancer (except some types of skin cancer).  Vitamin D3 is a hormone--I didn't know that till I read that book.  The doctor said that inflammation may cause many types of cancer and that aspirin reduces inflammation.  

    I agree that poverty plays a major role--people who aren't insured cannot usually get health care unless they go to the emergency room.  They don't go because they can't afford it, and if they have a cancer, it gets to spread.

    There are a lot of "Love Canals" in the country, particularly concentrated in certain areas.  Where I live, there's evidently a higher rate of several types of cancers where they once dumped industrial wastes.  According to some reports, there also appear to be higher rates of cancer where they have lower electrical power lines running near homes.  There were many reports of unusual numbers of cancer deaths in the areas where they did bomb testing.  John Wayne, Susan Hayward, Dick Powell, Agnes Moorehead all died of cancer--and all worked on the same movie filmed in St. George, Utah.

    http://sonicbomb.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=123&mode=&order=0&thold=0

    "Of the 220 persons who worked on The Conqueror on location in Utah in 1955, 91 had contracted cancer as of the early 1980s and 46 died of it, including stars John Wayne, Susan Hayward, and Agnes Moorehead, and director Dick Powell."

    http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/374/did-john-wayne-die-of-cancer-caused-by-a-radioactive-movie-set

  • cp418
    cp418 Member Posts: 7,079
    edited June 2012

    Yes, I'm aware in many of the agriculture areas of the country that farms use well water which is contaminated by pesticide and fertilizer run off.  Nevada test sites explains the higher incidence there.  Also, very interesting to see the trend of cancer among movie stars on specific film locations.  The east coast seems to be a solid toxic waste land.  No wonder with the oil refineries, chemical, pharmaceutical, and other manufacturing sites contaminating ground, water, air.........

Categories