There's a whole community of women in China who only use the right
breast. Here's an article on their cancer rates - interesting!

Lancet. 1977 Jul 16;2(8029):124-7.Links
Unilateral breast-feeding and breast cancer.Ing R, Petrakis NL, Ho JH.
Women of fishing villages in Hong Kong by custom breast-feed with only
the right breast. The hypothesis that the unsuckled breast may have an
altered risk of cancer development was investigated. Records of the
radiotherapy divisions in Hong Kong between 1958 and 1975 were searched,
and breast-cancer patients were interviewed for a detailed history of
lactation. The overall left/right ratio of cancer in the breasts of 2372
women with unilateral breast carcinoma was 0-97, indicating that breast
cancer was equally distributed between the two sides. Of 73 patients
with a history of exclusively one-sided breast-feeding, 27 of 34
patients aged 55 or over (79-4%) and 19 of 39 patients under age 55
(48-7%) had a carcinoma in the unsuckled breast. Comparisons of patients
who had nursed unilaterally with nulliparous patients and with patients
who had borne children but had not breast-fed indicated a highly
significant increased risk of cancer in the unsuckled breast. No
statistically significant differences in laterality of breast cancer
were found in 52 patients who had for convenience nursed to a greater
extent from one side than the other. This study indicates that in
post-menopausal women who have breast-fed unilaterally, the risk of
cancer is significantly higher in the unsuckled breast and that
breast-feeding may help to protect the suckled breast against cancer.

Regards, 
Laura Block, PharmD
Clinical Pharmacist

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