Not all women have an equal risk of developing breast cancer. There are a few factors that can aggravate a woman’s risk of developing the disease. However, simply having multiple risk factors does not imply that you will develop breast cancer. At the same time, having only a few risk factors also does not mean that you will never develop breast cancer.

But, what are the common risk factors for breast cancer? Read on to find out.

1. Alcohol use
Women who consume alcohol have a greater risk of developing breast cancer.

2. Genetic mutations
Acquired gene mutations and certain genes, such as BRCA2 and BRCA1, can heighten your risk of developing breast cancer and ovarian cancer.

3. Weight
The risk of breast cancer is higher in women who are obese. This risk further aggravates after menopause. The primary estrogen source following menopause is the fat tissue after the ovaries stop estrogen production. This can exacerbate the risk of breast cancer.

4. Familial link
Women who have first relatives diagnosed with breast cancer also have a greater risk of developing the disease. So, when you have at least one close female relative, such as a mother, sister, or daughter, your risk of developing breast cancer is doubled.

5. Not having children
Women who do not have children or have their first child after 30 have a high breast cancer risk. On the other hand, women with several pregnancies or women who become pregnant at an early age have a lower breast cancer risk.

6. Age
As women grow older, the risk of developing cancer also increases. So the risk is pretty high in women over the age of fifty.

7. Personal breast cancer history
If the woman has had cancer in one breast, then there is a greater chance of developing cancer in the other or the same breast again.

8. Gender
Compared to men, women have a greater risk of developing breast cancer.

9. History of breast conditions
Women who underwent breast biopsies to detect atypical hyperplasia of the breast or lobular carcinoma in situ have a higher chance of developing breast cancer.

10. Radiation exposure
When one has received radiation treatments in the chest, be it as an adult or child, the risk for developing breast cancer is increased.

11. Early periods
When a woman has her first period before the age of twelve, there is a greater risk for her developing breast cancer later in life.

12. Starting menopause at an older age
If your menopause starts at an older age, then this, too, is one of the common risk factors for breast cancer.

13. Postmenopausal hormone therapy
Women taking hormone therapy medications, which combine progesterone and estrogen to cure menopause symptoms, have a greater risk of breast cancer. However, the risk lowers when you stop taking these medications.