What Young Women Don’t Know Can Hurt Them

Coffee Brown, University of New Mexico, Talk Radio News

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) announced the EARLY Act, designed to educate younger women regarding the risks of breast cancer and the value of regular self-examination.

Wasserman Schultz spoke frankly, and at times emotionally, of her very recent fight with the disease. She learned through screening that she carried a significant risk factor. “I would never have known that. I thought I thought I knew all my risks,” she said.

She also learned that 10,000 women under 50 are diagnosed with breast cancer each year, that they tend to have more advanced disease, and that the tumors tend to be more aggressive. The net effect is higher mortality in younger women, who are often still raising a family, Wasserman Schultz said.

The bill, named for “Education and Awareness Requires Learning Young Act” promotes public awareness, preventive research, and support for those with the diagnosis, as well as health care provider awareness of the realities of breast cancer in younger women.