About three years ago I found a pea-sized lump in my breast. I was fairly sure it was fine but went to get it checked and was impressed by the efficiency of the NHS. It was two weeks between my first GP visit and the final biopsy that fortunately confirmed it was not cancerous.

During those two weeks I got a glimpse of the system and more importantly the people who make up what must be the most vocal and successful patient group in the world.

Women have done a great job of being their own advocates – raising awareness and money to push for more research.

In fact women have been so successful in this pursuit that breast cancer research receives more funding than any other type of cancer both in the UK and the US; almost twice as much funding than for prostate cancer, which has a similar number of cases each year.

This really shows that speaking up and getting patients, their family and friends involved in research can have a major impact.

To date, we have developed an intricate understanding of the genetics of breast cancer. Angelina Jolie brought this to the attention of the media recently when she was found, through genetic testing, to have the BRCA1/2 (commonly pronounced “bracka 1 or bracka 2”) mutation.

This is the mutation that tends to run in families and creates a very high risk of developing breast cancer.

There is a decent-sized list of random letters that scientists have chosen to represent the genetic mutations that increase the risk of breast cancer. Genetic testing can be a useful preventative tool but can lead to tricky decisions, like for Angelina, who opted to have a mastectomy.

Understanding the genetics has also lead to new treatments, most of which are developed to tackle one characteristic of the cancer.

A bit like an on-line dating site where each person’s cancer has its own profile with certain characteristics. Doctors then do their best to match a set of treatments to those characteristics in the hope the relationship will be a knock out!

As has been the case since the very first cancer drugs (Vincristine – one of the first chemotherapy drugs was originally extracted from a periwinkle flower), nature is providing a useful source of new, powerful drugs such as those from insect and animal venoms.

Research is also helping us to understand the things we can do to reduce the risk of breast cancer.

Recently a huge study in the US showed that post-menopausal women who exercised regularly (equivalent of about four hours walking per week) were much less likely to get breast cancer.

Without the investment and support breast cancer research has received over the past 20 years I doubt that we would have made so much progress.

Women and girls can thank those who have fought and shouted about the need for support for the fact that now, a diagnosis of breast cancer is by no means a death sentence.

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