Potential of breastmilk analysis to inform early events in breast carcinogenesis: rationale and considerations.
This review summarizes methods related to the study of human breastmilk in etiologic and biomarkers research. Despite the importance of reproductive factors in breast carcinogenesis, factors that act early in life are difficult to study because young women rarely require breast imaging or biopsy, and analysis of critical circulating factors (e.g., hormones) is often complicated by the requirement to accurately account for menstrual cycle date. Accordingly, novel approaches are needed to understand how events such as pregnancy, breastfeeding, weaning, and post-weaning breast remodeling influence breast cancer risk. Analysis of breastmilk offers opportunities to understand mechanisms related to carcinogenesis in the breast, and to identify risk markers that may inform efforts to identify high-risk women early in the carcinogenic process. In addition, analysis of breastmilk could have value in early detection or diagnosis of breast cancer. In this article, we describe the potential for using breastmilk to characterize the microenvironment of the lactating breast with the goal of advancing research on risk assessment, prevention, and detection of breast cancer.
Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program, Division of Cancer Prevention, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA. jeanne.murphy@nih.gov.|Breast and Gynecologic Cancer Research Group, National Cancer Institute, 9609 Medical Center Dr, Office Number: 5E-332, Rockville, MD, 20892-9712, USA. jeanne.murphy@nih.gov.
Jeanne
J
Murphy
Division of Cancer Prevention, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA.
Mark E
ME
Sherman
Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA.
Eva P
EP
Browne
Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA.
Ana I
AI
Caballero
Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA.
Elizabeth C
EC
Punska
Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA.
Ruth M
RM
Pfeiffer
Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA.
Hannah P
HP
Yang
Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA.
Maxwell
M
Lee
Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA.
Howard
H
Yang
Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA.
Gretchen L
GL
Gierach
Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA.
Kathleen F
KF
Arcaro
D001942:Breast Feeding; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D055088:Early Detection of Cancer / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007774:Lactation; D008895:Milk, Human / Q000737:chemistry*; D011247:Pregnancy; D012307:Risk Factors; D013048:Specimen Handling; D014886:Weaning
Biomarkers; Breast cancer; Human breastmilk; Methods; Prevention