Breast Cancer Awareness

Until about 2 years ago I thought that breast cancer usually happened to women who had it in their families. The Breast Cancer Fund taught me that less than 10% of all breast cancer cases are linked to genetic factors. So what of the other 90%? Here's an article on chemicals, radiation and the environment: According to a study collected by the Breast Cancer Fund, in the United States, a woman’s lifetime risk of breast cancer is more than 1 in 8. In 2005, the disease was expected to kill more than 40,000 American women. 1 Yet few people know that less than 1 out of 10 women who have breast cancer have a genetic history of the disease, and as many as half of all breast cancers occur in women who have no known risk factors. A growing body of scientific evidence links exposure to environmental factors, like radiation and synthetic chemicals, to an increased risk of breast cancer. An estimated 100,000 synthetic chemicals are in use today in the United States, yet we know very little about the likely long-term health effects of exposure to these chemicals. 2 More than 90 percent of these chemicals, many of which are ingredients in everyday products, have never been tested for their effects on human health, 3 but evidence shows they can contribute to the development of breast cancer, either by altering hormone function or gene expression. Many of these chemicals persist in the environment, accumulate in body fat and remain in breast tissue for decades. Key Facts * Environmental exposures—in combination with genetic predisposition, age at exposure and hormonal factors—have a cumulative impact and put women at greater risk for breast cancer according to two new articles. 4,5 * Women who move from countries with low breast cancer rates to countries with higher rates soon acquire the higher risk of their new country. * A major study by Tufts University scientists demonstrated the profound effects of low-dose exposure to chemicals early in life. The scientists found that exposing pregnant mice to extremely low levels of bisphenol A altered the development of the mammary glands in their offspring at puberty. 6 * Triazine herbicides, the most heavily used agricultural chemicals in the United States, have been shown to cause mammary cancer in animals. * Synthetic agents that mimic the actions of estrogens, known as xenoestrogens, are present in many pesticides, fuels, plastics, detergents and prescription drugs. 7 Chronic exposure to them may explain the increase in breast cancer in industrialized countries around the world. * Phthalates are a group of hormone-disrupting compounds commonly used to render plastics soft and flexible. They are found in some varieties of nail polish, perfumes, skin moisturizers, flavorings and solvents, and have been shown to significantly increase cell proliferation in human breast cancer cells. 8 Learn More - to learn more visit http://www.breastcancerfund.org/evidence Endnotes 1. American Cancer Society (2005). Cancer Facts and Figures 2005. 2. Carpenter DO, Arcaro K Bush B, Niemi WD, Pang S, Vakharia DD (1998). Human health and chemical mixtures: An overview. Environmental Health Perspectives 106(S6):1263-1270. 3. Bennett M, Davis BJ (2002). The identification of mammary carcinogens in rodent bioassays. Environmental and Molecular Mutagenesis. 39(2-3): 150-157. 4. Coyle YM (2004). The effect of environment on breast cancer risk. Breast Cancer Research and Treatment 84:273-288. 5. Mitra AK, Faruque FS, Avis AL (2004). Breast cancer and environmental risks: Where is the link? Journal of Environmental Health 66:24-32. 6. Munoz de Toro M, Markey C, Perinaaz R W, Luque EH, Rubin BS, Sonnenschein C, Soto A (2005). Perinatal exposure to bisphenol A alters peripubertal mammary gland development in mice. Endocrinology online doi:10.1210/en.2005-0340. 7. National Academy Press (1999). Hormonally active agents in the environment. ISBN-0309-06419-8. 8. Kim IY, Han SY, Moon A (2004). Phthalates inhibit tamoxifen-induced apoptosis in MCF-7 human breast cancer cells. Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health 67:2025-2035.

I just found this free, searchable online database: http://sciencereview.silentspring.org/index.cfm [Sandra Steingraber, PhD., a great ecologist and breast cancer survivor with the Silent Spring Institute is always doing talked on the environmental connections to breast cancer. I'm always impressed by the Silent Spring Institute studies] The database is available free of charge and will be of particular interest to researchers, healthcare workers, policymakers and members of the public. The database reveals that among the 216 compounds that cause breast tumors in animals: -- 73 have been present in consumer products or as contaminants in food -- 35 are air pollutants -- 25 have been associated with occupational exposures affecting more than 5,000 women a year -- 29 are produced in the United States in large amounts, often exceeding 1 million pounds per year. The database includes references to 900 studies, 460 of which are human breast cancer studies that were critically evaluated by the research team. The studies measure breast cancer risk related to body size, physical activity, environmental pollutants, and prospective studies of diet. For each study, bibliographic information, key methods and findings, and a critical assessment of the strength of the evidence is included.