"Constitutive" skin pigmentation: a marker of breast cancer risk?
There is much evidence to support a link between oestrogen and breast cancer. Both adult and foetal oestrogen may have this predisposing effect, and between-individual and between-population differences in oestrogen may account for much of the variation in risk for breast cancer. Here we suggest that "constitutive" skin colour in women is a marker for prenatal and adult oestrogen levels such that within ethnic groups light-skinned women have experienced higher in utero and adult oestrogen than dark-skinned women. Scores for 'constitutive' skin pigment may therefore be predictive of risk for breast cancer and low scores could be used to identify individuals at high risk.
Manning
J T
JT
Department of Psychology, University of Central Lancashire, Preston PR1 2HE, UK. jtmanning@uclan.ac.uk
Caswell
N
N
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000378:metabolism*; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000378:metabolism*; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D003124:Colorimetry / Q000379:methods*; D004967:Estrogens / Q000378:metabolism*; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008954:Models, Biological; D018570:Risk Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D012307:Risk Factors; D012880:Skin Pigmentation; D013223:Statistics as Topic
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D004967:Estrogens