Julia Louis-Dreyfus' breast cancer news shows how far we've come

When Julia Louis-Dreyfus announced on Twitter Thursday that she has breast cancer, she received an outpouring of support. In less than a day, her tweet received more than 300,00 likes. But there was a time not so long ago that such a public admission — and the swift praise of her bravery — were not a given.

Breast cancer has existed for thousands of years, but before the 20th century, people rarely spoke of it.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus: 'One in eight women get breast cancer; today, I'm the one'

"I remember in the '80s when I couldn't say the word 'breast' in a public meeting," said breast cancer specialist Larry Norton of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. "If there were men in the audience, I had to say 'mammary gland.'"

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Written by Alia E. Dastagir for USA Today

(Photo: Richard Shotwell, Invision/AP)