Post exaggerates breast cancer cases estimates for 2023 to claim COVID jabs are 'bioweapons'

By: Chandan Borgohain
July 20 2023

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Context

A screenshot of a tweet blaming COVID-19 vaccines for a “massive increase in breast cancer” cases in women under 50 is circulating online on Facebook. The tweet seems to have been shared on Instagram by the account ‘humanityfreedom2.0’ before it made its way to Facebook, where one Chris Hancock shared it. The post claims “COVID vaccines are bioweapons to kill people” by suggesting that the number of breast cases in women under 50 in the U.S. in 2023 had reached as much as 297,790—a purported significant jump from previous years. It goes on to say, “ALARMING: Massive Increase In Breast Cancer seen in women under age 50: -2019: 26,660-2020; 26,500-2021; 26,510-2022; 47,550-2023:297,790*” The screenshot highlights the number of cases in 2020 (26,500) and 2023 (297,790) to indicate the alleged staggering increase in breast cancer and attributes the figures to the ‘American Cancer Association.’ 

In Fact

The figures mentioned in the post are year-wise estimates of breast cancer cases in the U.S. as projected by the American Cancer Society, wrongly termed American Cancer Association in the Facebook post. According to a report by the American Cancer Society titled ‘Cancer Facts & Figures 2023,’ the estimated number of breast cancer cases in women under 50 in 2023 is 48,780, not 297,790 as claimed in the post. The figure 297,790 actually refers to the total estimated cases in 2023 across all age groups.

The post also gets its 2019, 2020, and 2021 figures wrong. Those are actually the number of breast cancer cases among women under 45 and not 50.

A glance at the estimated number of cases of breast cancer in women of all age groups, as available on the American Cancer Society website, shows that while it is 297,790 for 2023, the numbers for 2022, 2021, 2020, and 2019 are 287,850, 281,550, 276,480, and 268,600 respectively. A comparison of the estimated totals over the years does not show a huge jump in 2023.

The viral post insinuates that the purported increase in the number of breast cancer cases is due to the COVID vaccine. However, there is no medical evidence to back this claim. 

In an article published on the subject by Johns Hopkins Medicine, Lisa Ann Mullen, Assistant Professor and a radiologist specializing in breast cancer and breast imaging, noted that there is “no connection between the COVID-19 vaccine and breast cancer.” According to the American Cancer Society, “There is no information that suggests that COVID-19 vaccines cause cancer. There is also no information that suggests these vaccines can make cancer grow or recur.”

Dr. T Jacob John, virologist at Christian Medical College in Tamil Nadu’s Vellore, told Logically Facts that he “doubts the plausibility of such claims.” He added that any connection between the COVID-19 vaccine and higher breast cancer cases is “biologically most unlikely” and that such “statistical analysis could be misleading if they are not corroborated with evidence.” “I have not come across any scientific literature that shows that COVID-19 vaccine can cause breast cancer in women,” he added.

Moreover, the screenshot featured in the Facebook post shows that the claim was originally shared by Emerald Robinson, a former White House correspondent for Newsmax TV, on Twitter. We checked Robinson’s Twitter profile and found that she had shared the tweet in question on July 4. However, the tweet Robinson was replying to, showing the number of breast cancer cases, is no longer available. Robinson is known for spreading misinformation about COVID vaccines and was earlier suspended from Twitter for “repeated violation” of the platform’s COVID-19 misinformation policy, as reported by CNN on November 10, 2021. 

The Verdict

The viral post grossly exaggerates the increase in number of breast cancer cases in women in the U.S. The estimated number of breast cancer casesr in women under 50 for 2023 is 48,780 and not 297,790 as claimed. Medical experts also believe there is no link between the COVID-19 vaccine and breast cancer. Hence, we mark the claim false.