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Cancer danger for lesbians

Friday 05 February 1993 00:02 GMT
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NEW YORK (AP) - Lesbians have a one-in-three risk of developing breast cancer, two to three times that of heterosexual women, according to a study by a National Cancer Institute researcher. Suzanne Haynes, an epidemiologist, said known breast-cancer 'risk factors' such as alcohol use, smoking, lack of childbearing and poor access to health care were all more common among lesbians than among heterosexual women. She also said surveys showed that lesbians were far less likely to undergo breast examinations and other preventive care.

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