Gamma-ray-induced mutagen sensitivity and risk of sporadic breast cancer in young women: a case-control study.
Hypersensitivity to radiation exposure has been suggested to be a risk factor for the development of breast cancer. In this case-control study of 515 young women (≤ 55 years) with newly diagnosed sporadic breast cancer and 402 cancer-free controls, we examined the radiosensitivity as measured by the frequency of chromatid breaks induced by gamma-radiation exposure in the G2 phase of phytohemagglutinin-stimulated and short-term cultured fresh lymphocytes. We found that the average chromatid breaks per cell from 50 well-spread metaphases were statistically significantly higher in 403 non-Hispanic White breast cancer patients (0.52 ± 0.22) than that in 281 non-Hispanic White controls (0.44 ± 0.16) (P value < 0.001), and in 60 Mexican American breast cancer patients (0.52 ± 0.19) than that in 65 Mexican American controls (0.44 ± 0.16) (P value = 0.021), but the difference was not significant in African Americans (52 cases [0.45 ± 0.16] versus 56 controls [0.47 ± 0.16], P = 0.651). The frequency of chromatid breaks per cell above the median of control subjects was associated with two-fold increased risk for breast cancer in non-Hispanic Whites and Mexican Americans. A dose-response relationship was evident between radiosensitivity and risk for breast cancer (P (trend) < 0.001) in these two ethnic groups. We concluded that gamma-ray-induced mutagen sensitivity may play a role in susceptibility to breast cancer in young non-Hispanic White and Mexican American women.
Department of Epidemiology, Unit 1365, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Blvd., Houston, TX 77030, USA. lwang@mdanderson.org
Li-E
LE
Wang
Chan H
CH
Han
Ping
P
Xiong
Melissa L
ML
Bondy
Tse-Kuan
TK
Yu
Abenaa M
AM
Brewster
Sanjay
S
Shete
Banu K
BK
Arun
Thomas A
TA
Buchholz
Qingyi
Q
Wei
D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000209:etiology; D002278:Carcinoma in Situ / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000209:etiology; D018270:Carcinoma, Ductal, Breast / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000209:etiology; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002842:Chromatids / Q000528:radiation effects; D053960:DNA Breaks; D004198:Disease Susceptibility / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D005720:Gamma Rays / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006801:Humans; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000528:radiation effects; D017058:Mexican Americans; D008875:Middle Aged; D044465:White People