ABSTRACT
A diagnosis of breast cancer is a life-changing event for any woman. For young women and their families it can be devastating. Women aged under 45 years constitute fewer than 15% of new cases of breast cancer diagnosed annually in Australia and the United Kingdom (1,2). Nonetheless, both in the developed world and internationally, the incidence of breast cancer in premenopausal women is increasing (3). In 2008, the agespecifi c incidence rates per 100,000 were very similar for women aged 20-44 years in Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States (3-5). The age-specifi c incidence rates for breast cancer in less developed countries are lower than in the developed world for all age groups but incidence rises in similar increments for both groups as age increases and it appears that a relatively high proportion of breast cancers occurs in younger women (Fig. 48.1) (6).
