Martina Navratilova has breast cancer

Martina Navratilova who has won 18 Grand Slam singles titles and 31 Grand Slam doubles titles revealed she has been diagnosed with breast cancer.

Navratilova's cancer known as ductal carconoma in situa or DCIS is considered non-invasive because it is confined to the milk ducts.  Media reports say her prognosis is excellent.

Navratilova attributed the early diagnosis to use of mammogram screening. and she encouraged others to get their annual mammograms.

Navratilova claimed she follows a healthy diet and exercises regularly.   She was quoted as saying "It's not all about eating right and exercising."  

Everyone has his own definition about healthy or unhealthy.  We do not know what is Navratilova's definition.

Regardless, nutrition experts say at least one third or probably the majority of cancer cases can be avoided if they follow a healthy diet.

Numerous studies have linked diet patterns to risk of cancer.  One study that showed up last week in pudmed.gov suggests eating fish often can reduce risk of breast cancer in postmenopausal women.  

The study led by by University of Leeds researchers and published in the April, 2010 of Nutrition and Cancer analyzed the correlation between different dietary patterns with risk of breast cancer in 35,372 women aged 35 to 69 years between 1995 and 1998.

The study participants were surveyed at baseline by a 217-item food frequency questionnaire and during an average 9-year follow up, 330 premenopausal women and 453 postmenopausal women developed invasive breast cancer.

Among postmenopausal women, the fish eating dietary pattern was associated with a 40 percent reduced risk of invasive breast cancer compared to red meat eaters. A vegetarian pattern was associated with a 15 percent reduction in the risk.

No associations between dietary patterns and risk of breast cancer were found among premenopausal women, according to the study.

Another thing women may do is take vitamin D supplements.  Studies suggest that high levels of vitamin D in the blood can not only reduce risk of breast cancer, but also increase odds of survival.

Breast cancer is diagnosed in more than 175,000 women in the United States each year and the disease kills about 50,000 annually in the country.

David Liu