Why Are Women Like Liu Qing and Yao Beina More Prone to Breast Cancer?

Liu Qing, president of DiDi and daughter of Lenovo founder Liu Chuanzhi, was rumored to have breast cancer; earlier, the well-known singer Yao Beina also died of breast cancer. These women who achieved brilliant success in their careers have now become targets of breast cancer. China was not originally a high-incidence area for breast cancer, but the trend is rising year by year, especially among women in Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, and developed coastal cities, where breast-cancer incidence is climbing fast and catching up with that of high-incidence developed countries.

The incidence of breast cancer is directly related to the level of social development—as if God were mocking the human model of social and economic development. Clearly, the richer we are, the better off we are not; nor is a more developed society necessarily a better one. In developed societies, there are more and more 'strong women,' and they are becoming a high-risk group for breast cancer. I often urge my own wife not to be so competitive, but she has never been able to withdraw from fierce social competition—a common affliction of women in developed cities.

Breast cancer occurs mainly in women; male breast cancer accounts for about 1% of all cases. Generally speaking, the later a woman marries, the later she bears children, and the greater her work pressure, the higher her risk of breast cancer. These features are becoming the common characteristics of professional women in developed cities. Worldwide, about 1.2 million women develop breast cancer each year and 500,000 die of it; North America and Northern Europe are high-incidence regions. A family history of breast cancer, a high-fat diet, obesity, and excessive intake of exogenous estrogen can all increase the risk.

Social development has given women a larger stage while also raising their risk of breast cancer. Among cancers, breast cancer has a relatively good prognosis, yet female stars like Yao Beina, because of their superstar status, become the hardest breast-cancer patients to rehabilitate. After developing breast cancer, patients need to relax, reduce work pressure, completely change their lifestyle, and cooperate with treatment. But the overwhelming social obligations of celebrities, the intense public attention, and the complex web of human relations make it impossible for them to convalesce quietly like ordinary people, or to withdraw from the very state of life and environment that made them ill.

The stronger-willed the personality, the more prone to cancer. Strong women have a higher rate of breast cancer than ordinary women—and not only breast cancer; other cancers such as gastric, lung, and liver cancer also occur more often. Some strong women sacrifice their health and lives for work and end up with various cancers. Over the years I have met many such women, and only after getting cancer do they begin to regret their outlook on life.

Women who are open-hearted and indifferent to fame and fortune have a much lower rate of breast cancer than others. Everything is created by the mind; outside temptation is only an external cause. What one must truly conquer is one's own heart. To stay away from breast cancer, women friends must learn to let go.