Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in women today (after lung cancer) and is the most common cancer among women, excluding nonmelanoma skin cancers. According to the World Health Organization, more than 1.2 million people will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year worldwide. The American Cancer Society estimates that in 2000 approximately 182,800 new cases of invasive breast cancer (Stages I-IV) will be diagnosed among women in the United States. Another 39,900 women will be diagnosed with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), a non-invasive breast cancer. DCIS is the earliest form of breast cancer, confined to the milk ducts of the breast. Though much less common, breast cancer also occurs in men. An estimated 1,400 cases will be diagnosed in men in 2000.

In 2000, more than 700,000 people will die from breast cancer worldwide. It is estimated that 41,200 deaths will occur from breast cancer (40,800 among women, 400 among men) in the United States. The incidence rate of breast cancer (number of new breast cancers per 100,000 women) increased by approximately 4% during the 1980s but leveled off to 100.6 cases per 100,000 women in the 1990s. The death rates from breast cancer also declined significantly between 1992 and 1996, with the largest decreases among younger women. Medical experts attribute the decline in breast cancer deaths to earlier detection and more effective treatments.

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