Markers of Breast Cancer Risk in Women With Benign Breast Disease
Abstract
Although certain risk factors for breast cancer, such as never having giving birth, have been established, the biologic mechanisms by which these factors increase the risk of breast cancer is not well understood. Several of the possible mechanisms can be measured in breast tissue. One measure is the rate that breast cells replicate, which increases the chance of the genetic errors that cause cancer. Another measure is the organization of breast tissue into structures, which "mature" during a pregnancy and have less cell turnover. To conduct studies to determine if these measures are related to future risk of breast cancer, normal breast tissue is needed that has been collected years before diagnosis among women with breast cancer. The aim of this pilot project is to establish a breast tissue repository that can be used in future studies of markers of breast cancer risk in normal breast tissue. To do this we will identify and retrieve the tissue specimens from women who are members of Group Health Cooperative (GHC) who underwent excisional breast biopsy with benign findings between 1980 and 1998. These breast cancer cases represent the largest series of women with prior normal breast tissue assembled to-date.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 2002
- Accession Number
- ADA412798
Entities
People
- Margaret Mandelson