Diabetes and Breast Cancer

• When breast cancer is serious and life threatening, it is often necessary to remove the breast.
• When a woman has this surgery, she can choose to use special padded bras or she can have reconstructive surgery to re-create a breast.

• Some women say they feel less of a woman if they have had a mastectomy (surgical removal of the breast)
  • These reactions are common and you should know that this is something to talk to your doctor, your family and other cancer survivors about.

(Maybe photos of Cece, Gloria and Margo together at the Nov conference?)»

Breast Cancer And Diabetes

• The challenge of having diabetes and breast cancer is an extra stress for the woman coping with breast cancer.
• This learning module talks about how having breast cancer and getting breast cancer treatment can affect your diabetes control.

Diabetes: A Growing Problem

• American Diabetes Association says that there are over 18 million people with diabetes
• There may be more but many are undiagnosed
• Diabetes is increasing among all racial groups in the U.S. largely due to more and more people being so overweight
• According the I.H.S. 15% of American Indians/Alaska Natives have diabetes
• Most of the diabetes is called, type 2 diabetes
• Type 2 diabetes is almost always only found in adults
• But today AIAN have children as young as age 6 who have type 2 diabetes
• This is largely due to so many AIAN children being obese and severely overweight