Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women, other than skin cancer, and the second deadliest cancer in U.S. women; lung cancer is the deadliest. Approximately 207,090 cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in 2010, according to the American Cancer Society (ACS). Though an estimated 39,840 women will die from breast cancer, there are more than 2.5 million breast cancer survivors in the United States, according to the ACS.
Fortunately, the number of deaths caused by breast cancer has declined significantly in recent years, with the largest decreases in younger women—both Caucasian and African American. These decreases are probably the result of earlier detection and improved treatment.