Breast Cancer

Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer diagnosed in women and also the most common cause of death in women from malignant diseases. The incidence of this disease is on an upward trend worldwide. Therefore, research on the etiopathogenesis of breast cancer has received considerable attention. The most important risk factors include sex, age, degree of economic development of a given country, hormonal factors, mainly related to the length of exposure to estrogen, procreative factors, including the number of children born, the age of birth of the first child, or breastfeeding. Genetic factors, the use of hormone replacement therapy, unhealthy lifestyle factors (e.g., increased alcohol intake, reduced physical activity), and obesity also play an important role. In addition, exposure to ionizing radiation at a young age and shift work (Smolarz et al. 2022).