Myth: Radiation therapy increases the chances of the breast cancer spreading.

Radiation therapy is done with the intention of reducing the spread of the cancer. Therefore, if you have cancer in one breast and if you go for radiation therapy for it, the chance of it spreading to the other breast does not exist. However, teenage girls who receive chest radiation for Hodgkin's disease do run the risk of developing breast cancer because newly developing breasts are vulnerable to damage by radiation.

Myth: A mammogram will prevent breast cancer.

Mammograms are only used as a means of detection; whether or not you have a malignancy, it will in no way prevent you from getting one. If the malignancy is detected at an early stage by mammography, the chances of it being cured are very good. Mammography is the only possible means of detecting a malignancy in women who do not have an evident physical signs, that is, a lump in the breast. It is recommended that women over 40 years of age have a mammogram every year.

Myth: Breast feeding gives rise to breast cancer.

This is not so. Studies have shown that breast feeding may actually decrease the chances of a woman getting breast cancer. This is not confirmed data however. Women who breast feed can certainly get breast cancer but breast feeding is definitely not a cause of getting it.

Myth: Mammograms are dangerous and breast cancer can spread by having one done.

Mammograms are actually x-rays of the breast using very low levels of radiation of about 0.1 to 0.2 rad dose per x-ray. It is best if you speak with your physician who will answer all the question you will need to ask.

Myth: Wearing bras with under-wire can cause breast cancer.

What is suggested is that by wearing bras with the under-wire it can cause constriction of the body's lymph node system and thereby resulting in breast cancer. This is completely false.

Myth: An injury to the breast can be the cause of breast cancer.

As a result of an injury, you will not develop breast cancer; you can however develop a non cancerous lump owing to an injury.

Myth: Nipple discharge indicates breast cancer.

Most of the nipple discharges are not an indication of a cancerous condition.

A watery or a bloody nipple discharge is said to be abnormal, of which, only about 10 percent are considered cancerous. Most of the bloody discharges are owing to papillomas, which are non-cancerous. If the discharge is milky, green, yellow or clear it is not cancerous. However if a woman has a nipple discharge about which she is concerned then she should consult her physician who will then probably do a clinical examination. Some nipple discharges that should be further examined are if they are persistent, if it appears without even having to squeeze the nipple, if it is some other fluid other than breast milk, if it is from one breast only, bloody or watery with a brown, red or pink coloration and if it is sticky and clear in color or black or brown.

Myth: A woman who has been cancer earlier should not get pregnant.

There is much metabolic and hormonal change occurring when a woman gets pregnant. Studies have shown that this does not cause any significant risk of breast cancer recurring.

Myth: Breast cancer can be got by coming into contact with an individual who already has it, that is, it is contagious.

This is absolutely false. Cancer is formed by the abnormal multiplication of cells and changes that occur in one woman's cells cannot affect the cells of another woman. The common risk factors of breast cancer are age, obesity, high fat content diet, family history, if menstruation begins at an early age, if menstruation continues beyond the age of 50, if a previous breast biopsy shows benign conditions, mutations of the genes BRCA1 and BRCA2 and not having children.

Myth: If only your mother's family has a history of breast cancer, it can affect your risk.

This is not so. You could be at risk equally if either your mother's or father's family has had a history of breast cancer. Your compliment of genes come equally, that is, half from your mother and half from your father. If a man and a woman have a similar breast cancer gene abnormality, the likelihood of the woman developing breast cancer is more than when compared with the man. Therefore in order to follow your father's family history, you have to take into account the women on your father's side and rather than the men.

Myth: You have been cured of breast cancer if you are cancer free five years after you have been diagnosed.

Being free of some cancers five years after you have been diagnosed does imply a cure, but it is not the case in breast cancer. The chances of it recurring is greatest in the first two years after it has been diagnose, but it can and does recur at any time after the initial diagnosis, that is, it can occur even after 2 or 3 or even 10 years after initial diagnosis.

Myth: You will lose your hair when you undergo radiation therapy.

You will not lose the hair on your head, but you may lose the hair on your nipple and the hair in your armpit next to the breast that is undergoing the radiation. This is only temporary and will grow back. Radiation therapy is focused directly on the tissue of the breast and sometimes on the nearby lymph nodes. You will lose your hair on your head only if the radiation is targeted at your head.

Myth: You will lose your hair when you undergo chemotherapy.

Chemotherapy affects the whole body and as a result, there might be some loss of hair. However, this loss of hair depends on how long the treatment is going to be, they types of drugs and the dosage. If a woman does lose hair, however during chemotherapy it usually begins about three weeks after the treatment has begun. The loss of hair is, however, only a temporary side effect and will grow back once chemotherapy has concluded.