Breast Cancer

All of you, my readers (& “online friends”), are very intelligent – I’d love your thoughts on all this…

What have you read about the synthetic hormone/breast cancer connection? Right after my Mom was diagnosed with breast cancer recently, I came across this article about hormone replacement therapy and the link to breast cancer. (You may have to sign in first at that link to read the post…I know, I think it’s irritating, too.)
An interesting note: it’s pretty widely known (and undisputed from what I can tell) that breastfeeding cuts your breast cancer risk. (However, I know some women are unable to for whatever reason…)
I’m getting my first mammogram soon, but I hesitated because I’ve read that mammograms can cause breast cancer. (Google “Mammogram danger” and you’ll have enough info to freak you out, too.) As you know, we have to be careful about believing everything on the internet, but there’s enough info there to at least make you stop and think. (My doc wanted me to get one last year when I turned 40, but I hesitated after Googling/reading all that. Now at 41 1/2, after Mom was diagnosed, I finally decided to just get one for a “baseline”, but I probably won’t get one yearly like recommended.)
At the same time, I have a very close friend who went with another friend to get a mammogram, just for support, and found out that she had breast cancer! I know mammograms have saved some lives, maybe a lot of lives for all I know.
Did you know that many males get breast cancer, too? A good friend of my sister’s is almost done with his treatment, and doing well thankfully.
As soon as Mom was diagnosed, Cheeseslave recommended I go to this site, Breast Cancer Choices. I’ve been trying to figure out the iodine issue for myself and my family ever since. I’ll keep you posted on that…
Do you know anyone who was healed using natural treatments? I know that if it were me, with as many cured cases of breast cancer that I hear about now, I’d be very hesitant to not go the typical chemo/radiation route.
What important issues related to breast cancer have I missed?
As always, don’t make decisions based on what you read here (there’s way too much I don’t know), do your own research.
Added later: a great post from Raine on the topic of breast cancer and mammograms.