Every year nearly 180,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer. Certain risk factors such as genes, family history, race, age and reproductive factors can be associated with an increased risk for the disease. With this in mind, the North Shore Medical Center (NSMC) Cancer Center has launched a new, proactive breast cancer risk evaluation program.

The Breast Cancer Risk Program offers a specialized assessment to help identify women at risk for developing breast cancer. Identifying that risk enables a woman and her primary care provider to take steps to reduce the risk or increase the chances of finding breast cancer when it is curable. The Breast Cancer Risk Program offers women a personalized risk assessment, a clinical breast exam, genetic counseling, access to proven breast cancer prevention drugs and clinical prevention trials.

A patient’s primary care physician will evaluate the initial breast cancer risk, and if certain factors appear the PCP can refer that patient to the program. Once patients are referred, they may call the Center at 978-573-5355 to make an appointment.

The Breast Cancer Risk Program introduces women to ways to lower their risk of developing breast cancer through lifestyle changes, and educates women on what changes in their body they should be concerned about.

Evaluation of breast cancer risk is provided by Mary E. Costanza, M.D. Dr. Costanza, is working with the Cancer Center through the support of a grant from Lehman Brothers. She graduated from the University of Rochester School of Medicine and completed both her residency and fellowship at New England Medical Center. She is board certified in internal medicine and medical oncology. Dr. Costanza was formerly director of the division of oncology at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center.