. >> a heweek, a long time. a friend in need, is a friend indeed, but now having the friend may save your life. >> new medical research shows people who stayed socially connected end up living very longer, healthier lives, particularly women battling breast cancer. >> reporter: breast cancer affects one in eight american women at some point in their lives, and it kills more than 40,000 every year. we've come a long way in diagnosing sooner and treating effectively with new research showing staying socially active improves odds when faced with the disease. a team of researchers studied the social habits of 9 million women with breast cancer finding those socially isolated had a 43% recurrence rate and 64% higher risk of early death from breast kaempcancer over a ten y period. those with larger social circles had a better chance of surviving and not having cancer return. this doesn't prove it tilts odds against cancer, but good to have loved ones to lean on in times of sickness, and for others, finding ways to est