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Breast cancer is more likely to happen to women with gum disease
BEACON TRANSCRIPT – We know our body works in intricate ways and everything is pretty much connected to everything, but did you know that gum disease is linked to breast cancer?
There are many women in the world who have or are predisposed to develop breast cancer. On the other hand, there are even more women who are much likely to develop a common gum disease.
Despite that most of us probably take more care of our teeth than our breasts, the teeth suffer more often. The main reason for this is that there are many bacteria which enter our bodies orally and the first barrier the bacteria encounter is formed of teeth.
According to a new study led by a team of scientists from the University of Buffalo, there could be some links between periodontal disease and breast cancer. In the past the same gum disease has been linked to chronic diseases such as cardiovascular problems.
What links these diseases is bacteria. Bacteria can be found in many areas of the body from mouth to breasts and even in breast milk. The study conducted showed that women who suffered from periodontal disease were a bit more likely to have breast cancer.
The researchers used existing data of 73,000 women who were of post-menopausal age. They discovered that the ones who have had gum disease or who used to smoke were 36 percent more likely to develop breast cancer. Of course, the smoking could have led to worse oral hygiene, which leads to gum disease which eventually can lead to breast cancer.
The findings also point to the fact that there are parts of the body which were previously thought to be sterile, that actually contain bacteria. Freudenheim, the lead researcher believes that in the future they could even find a connection between periodontal disease and skin cancer, or more exactly between the bacteria that could cause these diseases. However, no studies have been made yet on this particular subject.
Thanks to new technologies, scientists are now able to approach out bodies’ biology deeper and from many angles and they can find and understand more about bacteria and viruses that flow through our bodies.
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