August 20, 2025, 9:05 am | Read time: 3 minutes
More than 70,000 women in Germany are newly diagnosed with breast cancer each year—overall, about one in seven to eight women will develop it during their lifetime. In addition to regularly examining the breast and closely monitoring changes, regular preventive check-ups are important for early detection. Yet even then, the diagnosis can come as a surprise—as it did for TV host Charlotte Potts.
“And suddenly life is turned upside down”
Journalist Charlotte Potts, 39, former ZDF “Morgenmagazin” host and current chief political reporter at ProSiebenSat.1, has publicly revealed that she has breast cancer. On Instagram, Potts wrote: “Diagnosis: breast cancer. And suddenly life is turned upside down.” The mother of two explained that she had undergone a preventive check-up just three months ago and therefore did not expect the diagnosis.
“You always hope it’s something that goes away with antibiotics”
“Of course, you always hope it’s something else, something harmless. Something that goes away with antibiotics. I never expected it. Especially since I dutifully went for a check-up just three months ago (like so many women I’m now meeting in treatment),” Potts writes. In the first few days, she still asked herself, “Why me?” But then she learned that one in seven women will develop breast cancer in their lifetime.
“Things get easier when you share them”
Everything happened quickly, Potts continued. There was hardly any time to think. “For two weeks now, Carboplatin has been running through my veins weekly—it sounds fancy, but it’s tough stuff and is supposed to make me healthy again.”
Because it’s her job “to observe, to tell, to describe how it is,” she will also “share a piece of this world that is so different for me.” The TV host is firmly convinced “that many things get easier when you share them.”
Cases Among Women Under 50 Are Rising
Breast cancer under 40: Charlotte Potts is not an isolated case. The number of breast cancer cases, especially among women younger than 50, is rising—as shown by alarming 2024 figures from the American Cancer Society (ACS).1 The report also shows: Despite rising case numbers, mortality is decreasing (FITBOOK reported).
One in eight women will develop breast cancer, according to US study
Signs You Should Get Checked for Ovarian Cancer
Changes to Watch for
A common first sign of breast cancer can be feeling a lump or thickening in the breast or armpit. However, one should also watch for the following changes, as they can also indicate breast cancer: changes in breast shape or size, skin changes on the breast, nipple changes, and pain in the breast or chest area.
Preventive Care does Not Provide Absolute Certainty
Despite diligent preventive care, the diagnosis of breast cancer: Charlotte Potts’ case makes it clear that preventive examinations are important to increase the chances of early detection, but they cannot provide absolute certainty.
The exact circumstances for the development of breast cancer have not yet been clarified. However, it is believed that it may occur due to changes (mutations) in genes, which can cause a normal body cell to develop into a malignant tumor. This process is also known as “cell degeneration.” The danger of mutations is that the cell loses its ability to inhibit division. As a result, the cell can multiply unchecked, leading to the formation of a tumor (which consists of many cells).2
While breast cancer, with about 74,500 new cases per year (2022 figure), is the most common cancer among women, the incidence rate among men in Germany is 690 cases per year.3 Learn more about the development, possible causes, and lifestyle factors that increase the risk of breast cancer here.