Women's understanding of personal breast cancer risk: Does ethnicity matter?

2013 ◽  
Vol 31 (26_suppl) ◽  
pp. 4-4 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan D. Herman ◽  
Sarah M. Herman

4 Background: A woman’s understanding of her breast cancer risk is an important precursor for care. A valid estimate allows for greater opportunity to consider early detection modalities and chemopreventive medications. The USPSTF recently encouraged women who have an increased risk of developing a first breast cancer and a low risk of side effects to take tamoxifen or raloxifen. The objective of this study is to compare patients' perceived breast cancer risk with their calculated risk and then parse those findings by ethnicity. Methods: Anonymous, IRB approved, pre-piloted questionnaires were filled out by women at 21 mammography centers on Long Island. The survey included questions about patient demographics, patient’s estimates of their own breast cancer risk and personal risk factors. Results: 9,873 respondents qualified for inclusion in our analysis. Women were asked to quantify their breast cancer risk by age 90. Overall, 707 (9.4%) were in line with their risks, 3,359 (44.7%) underestimated risk and 3,454 (45.9%) overestimated their risk. When parsed by ethnicity, of the 781 African Americans, 8.7% were in line, 57.6% underestimated risk, and 33.7% overestimated risk. Of the 245 Asians, 10.2% were in line, 58.8% underestimated risk, and 31% overestimated risk. Of the 427 Hispanics, 8.9% were in line, 50.4% underestimated risk, and 40.8% overestimated risk. Of the 6850 Caucasians, only 10.2% were in line, 38.6% underestimated risk, and 51.3% overestimated risk. Conclusions: Most women lack accurate knowledge of their own breast cancer risk – 90.6% overall. When parsed by ethnicity, while there was a statistical difference between groups, the difference was not important because overall understanding was very low. Caucasian women tended to overestimate their risk compared with other ethnic groups, possibly resulting in unnecessary anxiety. African American and Hispanics tended to underestimate risk compared with Caucasians, possibly resulting in underutilization of available resources. Patients must have a better understanding of their personal risk. Study findings should help refocus educational efforts because increased knowledge of breast cancer risk will enable providers to tailor an individual’s medical treatment plan.

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Liang Xiaohui ◽  
Liang Xiaohui ◽  
Nicholas Taylor ◽  
Vixey Fang ◽  
Xiao Zhang

Background: The cumulative and excessive exposures to estrogen contributing to increased risk of breast cancer may be misleading. Methods: We proposed a novel theory to highlight that exposure to unstable estrogen levels may play a critical role in determining breast cancer risk among females as the change of endocrine environment may pose a risky environment to breast tissues for carcinogenesis. Particularly, we considered the menstrual cycle related estrogen variation (MCREV) as the primary hazard to breast cancer among females. Results: To describe MCREV, its intensity was defined as the difference between the highest and the lowest levels of estrogen within a menstrual cycle; its timing was defined as age at menarche and age at pregnancies (i.e. timing of cessation of exposure to this hazard); and its frequency and duration can both be defined as the total number of menstrual cycles, which is influenced by many factors including age of menarche, age of menopause, average length of one menstrual cycle, and durations and number of pregnancies and breastfeeding. Conclusions: The proposed MCREV theory may identify women at high-risk of breast cancer at an earlier age. The development of breast cancer might be weakened if suitable techniques to reduce the MCREV become clinically available. This novel theory opens a new door in breast cancer prevention and management.


2018 ◽  
Vol 64 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-101
Author(s):  
Nazira Aldasheva ◽  
Vyacheslav Kipen ◽  
Zhaynagul Isakova ◽  
Sergey Melnov ◽  
Raisa Smolyakova ◽  
...  

Basing on Multifactor Dimensionality Reduction method we showed that polymorphic variants p.Q399R (rs25487, XRCC1) and p.P72R (rs1042522, TP53) correlated with increased risk of breast cancer for women from the Kyrgyz Republic and the Republic of Belarus. Cohort for investigation included patients with clinically verified breast cancer: 117 women from the Kyrgyz Republic (nationality - Kyrgyz) and 169 - of the Republic of Belarus (nationality - Belarusians). Group for comparison included (healthy patients without history of cancer pathology at the time of blood sampling) 102 patients from the Kyrgyz Republic, 185 - from the Republic of Belarus. Respectively genotyping of polymorphic variants p.Q399R (rs25487, XRCC1) and p.P72R (rs1042522, TP53) was done by PCR-RFLP. Analysis of the intergenic interactions conducted with MDR 3.0.2 software. Both ethnic groups showed an increase of breast cancer risk in the presence of alleles for SNPs Gln p.Q399R (XRCC1) in the heterozygous state: for the group “Kyrgyz” - OR=2,78 (95% CI=[1,60-4,82]), p=0,001; for the group “Belarusians” - OR=1,85 (95% СІ=[1Д1-2,82], p=0,004. Carriers with combination of alleles Gln (p.Q399R, XRCC1) and Pro (p.P72R, TP53) showed statistically significance increases of breast cancer risk as for patients from the Kyrgyz Republic (OR=2,89, 95% CI=[1,33-6,31]), so as for patients from the Republic of Belarus (OR=3,01, 95% CI=[0,79-11,56]).


2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (6) ◽  
pp. 1253-1255
Author(s):  
Zeev Blumenfeld ◽  
Norbert Gleicher ◽  
Eli Y Adashi

Abstract Whereas longstanding dogma has purported that pregnancies protect women from breast cancer, a recent meta-analysis now mandates reconsideration since it reported an actual higher breast cancer risk for more than two decades after childbirth before the relative risk turns negative. Moreover, the risk of breast cancer appears higher for women having their first birth at an older age and with a family history and it is not reduced by breastfeeding. The process of obtaining informed consent for all fertility treatments, therefore, must make patients aware of the facts that every pregnancy, to a small degree, will increase the short-term breast cancer risk. This observation may be even more relevant in cases of surrogacy where women agree to conceive without deriving benefits of offspring from assuming the risk, thus creating a substantially different risk-benefit ratio. Consequently, it appears prudent for professional societies in the field to update recommendations regarding consent information for all fertility treatments but especially for treatments involving surrogacy.


2011 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nupur Mukherjee ◽  
Nilanjana Bhattacharya ◽  
Satyabrata Sinha ◽  
Neyaz Alam ◽  
Runu Chakravarti ◽  
...  

The adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) and mutated in colorectal cancer (MCC) genes are key regulatory genes of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway, which are independently involved in maintaining low levels of β-catenin in the cell. In addition to genetic and epigenetic alterations, some genetic polymorphisms in the genes associated with the Wnt signaling pathway have been reported to be associated with an increased risk of cancer, including breast cancer. In the present study we analyzed the association of genotype and haplotype status of two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), rs2229992 and rs11283943, in the APC and MCC genes, respectively, with an increased risk of breast carcinogenesis in a breast cancer and control population from eastern India. We observed a significant association of the rs11283943 SNP with increased breast cancer risk. Two specific haplotypes involving the minor allele of rs11283943 were found to be associated with an increased breast cancer risk. Kaplan-Meier curves showed a significant association of the 2–2 genotype (genotype homozygous for the rs11283943 minor allele) with decreased survival (p=0.045) of the breast cancer patients in our study, in particular patients with early-onset BC.


Cancers ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (11) ◽  
pp. 3122
Author(s):  
Jie Shen ◽  
Renduo Song ◽  
Bernard F. Fuemmeler ◽  
Kandace P. McGuire ◽  
Wong-Ho Chow ◽  
...  

Prior research has demonstrated that altered telomere length, a well-known marker for biological aging, is associated with various types of human cancer. However, whether such association extends to additional hallmarks of biological aging, including cellular senescence, has not been determined yet. In this two-stage study, we assessed the association between p16INK4a mRNA expression in T cells, a marker of cellular senescence, and breast cancer risk. The discovery stage included 352 breast cancer patients and 324 healthy controls. p16INK4a mRNA expression was significantly higher in individuals who were older, Black, and had family history of cancer than their counterparts in both cases and controls. p16INK4a mRNA expression also differed by marital status, annual income, and smoking status in cases. In the discovery stage, we found that increased p16INK4a mRNA expression was associated with 1.40-fold increased risk of breast cancer (OR = 1.40; 95%CI: 1.21, 1.68; p < 0.001). A marginally significant association was further observed in the validation stage with 47 cases and 48 controls using pre-diagnostic samples (OR = 1.28; 95%CI: 0.98, 2.97; p = 0.053). In addition, we found that p16INK4a mRNA expression was higher in tumors with selected aggressive characteristics (e.g., poorly differentiated and large tumors) than their counterparts. In summary, our results demonstrate that higher p16INK4a mRNA expression in T cells is a risk factor for breast cancer and further support the role of biological aging in the etiology of breast cancer development. Novelty and Impact Statements: The results from this study provide evidence that cellular senescence, a process of biological aging, plays a role in breast cancer etiology. In addition, our results also support that social demographics may modify cellular senescence and biological aging.


2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lauren C. Houghton ◽  
Seungyoun Jung ◽  
Rebecca Troisi ◽  
Erin S. LeBlanc ◽  
Linda G. Snetselaar ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Earlier age at onset of pubertal events and longer intervals between them (tempo) have been associated with increased breast cancer risk. It is unknown whether the timing and tempo of puberty are associated with adult breast density, which could mediate the increased risk. Methods From 1988 to 1997, girls participating in the Dietary Intervention Study in Children (DISC) were clinically assessed annually between ages 8 and 17 years for Tanner stages of breast development (thelarche) and pubic hair (pubarche), and onset of menses (menarche) was self-reported. In 2006–2008, 182 participants then aged 25–29 years had their percent dense breast volume (%DBV) measured by magnetic resonance imaging. Multivariable, linear mixed-effects regression models adjusted for reproductive factors, demographics, and body size were used to evaluate associations of age and tempo of puberty events with %DBV. Results The mean (standard deviation) and range of %DBV were 27.6 (20.5) and 0.2–86.1. Age at thelarche was negatively associated with %DBV (p trend = 0.04), while pubertal tempo between thelarche and menarche was positively associated with %DBV (p trend = 0.007). %DBV was 40% higher in women whose thelarche-to-menarche tempo was 2.9 years or longer (geometric mean (95%CI) = 21.8% (18.2–26.2%)) compared to women whose thelarche-to-menarche tempo was less than 1.6 years (geometric mean (95%CI) = 15.6% (13.9–17.5%)). Conclusions Our results suggest that a slower pubertal tempo, i.e., greater number of months between thelarche and menarche, is associated with higher percent breast density in young women. Future research should examine whether breast density mediates the association between slower tempo and increased breast cancer risk.


2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 175-183 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isabelle Touwendpoulimdé Kiendrebeogo ◽  
Abdou Azaque Zoure ◽  
Pegdwendé Abel Sorgho ◽  
Albert Théophane Yonli ◽  
Florencia Wendkuuni Djigma ◽  
...  

AbstractBackground and objectiveBreast cancer remains the most common cause of cancer mortality in women. The aim of this study was to investigate associations between genetic variability in GSTM1 and GSTT1 and susceptibility to breast cancer.MethodsGenomic DNA was extracted from blood samples for 80 cases of histologically diagnosed breast cancer and 100 control subjects. Genotyping analyses were performed by PCR-based methods. Associations between specific genotypes and the development of breast cancer were examined using logistic regression to calculate odds ratios [1] and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI).ResultsNo correlation was found between GSTM1-null and breast cancer (OR = 1.83; 95%CI 0.90-3.71; p = 0.10), while GSTT1-null (OR = 2.42; 95%CI 1.17-5.02; p= 0.01) was associated with increased breast cancer risk. The GSTM1/GSTT1 double null was not associated with an increased risk of developing breast cancer (OR = 2.52; 95%CI 0.75-8.45; p = 0.20). Furthermore, analysis found no association between GSTM1-null (OR =1.12; 95%CI 0.08-15.50; p = 1.00) or GSTT1-null (OR = 1.71; 95%CI 0.13-22.51; p = 1.00) and the disease stage of familial breast cancer patients or sporadic breast cancer patients (GSTM1 (OR = 0.40; 95%CI 0.12-1.32; p = 0.20) and GSTT1 (OR = 1.41; 95%CI 0.39-5.12; p = 0.75)). Also, body mass index (BMI) was not associated with increased or decreased breast cancer risk in either GSTM1-null (OR = 0.60; 95%CI 0.21-1.68; p = 0.44) or GSTT1-null (OR = 0.60; 95%CI 0.21-1.68; p =0.45).ConclusionOur results suggest that only GSTT1-null is associated with increased susceptibility to breast cancer development.


2005 ◽  
Vol 8 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
J. L. Hopper

Citation of original article:K. Kerlikowske, J. Shepherd, J. Creasman, J. A. Tice, E. Ziv, S. R. Cummings. Are breast density and bone mineral density independent risk factors for breast cancer. Journal of the National Cancer Institute 2005; 97(7): 368–74.Abstract of the original articleBackground: Mammographic breast density and bone mineral density (BMD) are markers of cumulative exposure to estrogen. Previous studies have suggested that women with high mammographic breast density or high BMD are at increased risk of breast cancer. We determined whether mammographic breast density and BMD of the hip and spine are correlated and independently associated with breast cancer risk. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study (N = 15 254) and a nested case-control study (of 208 women with breast cancer and 436 control subjects) among women aged 28 years or older who had a screening mammography examination and hip BMD measurement within 2 years. Breast density for 3105 of the women was classified using the American College of Radiology Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) categories, and percentage mammographic breast density among the case patients and control subjects was quantified with a computer-based threshold method. Spearman rank partial correlation coefficient and Pearson's correlation coefficient were used to examine correlations between BI-RADS breast density and BMD and between percentage mammographic breast density and BMD, respectively, in women without breast cancer. Logistic regression was used to examine the association of breast cancer with percentage mammographic breast density and BMD. All statistical tests were two-sided. Results: Neither BI-RADS breast density nor percentage breast density was correlated with hip or spine BMD (correlation coefficient = −.02 and −.01 for BI-RADS, respectively, and −2.06 and .01 for percentage breast density, respectively). Neither hip BMD nor spine BMD had a statistically significant relationship with breast cancer risk. Women with breast density in the highest sextile had an approximately threefold increased risk of breast cancer compared with women in the lowest sextile (odds ratio: 2.7; 95% confidence interval: 1.4–5.4); adjusting for hip or spine BMD did not change the association between breast density and breast cancer risk. Conclusion: Breast density is strongly associated with increased risk of breast cancer, even after taking into account reproductive and hormonal risk factors, whereas BMD, although a possible marker of lifetime exposure to estrogen, is not. Thus, a component of breast density that is independent of estrogen-mediated effects may contribute to breast cancer risk.


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