title: Soluble vascular endothelial growth factor receptors 2 (sVEGFR-2) and 3 (sVEGFR-3) and breast cancer risk in the Swedish Mammography Cohort.
abstract: Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a signalling protein that has been established as a contributor to tumor angiogenesis, and expression of VEGF and its soluble receptors (sVEGFR2 and sVEGFR3) have been demonstrated in breast cancer cells. However, no prospective studies have examined the association between prediagnostic sVEGFR levels and breast cancer risk. We conducted a prospective case-control study nested within the Swedish Mammography Cohort examining the association between sVEGFR2 and 3 levels and breast cancer risk. The analysis included 69 incident breast cancer cases diagnosed after blood collection and 719 controls. Logistic regression models were used to calculate odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals. After adjustment for breast cancer risk factors, sVEGFR2 levels were associated with breast cancer risk (OR=1.28; 95% CI=1.06-1.56 per 1000 ng/L increase in concentration) while sVEGFR3 levels were not related to such risk (OR=1.00; 95% CI=0.93-1.07). Our results suggest that sVEGFR2 levels may be positively associated with breast cancer risk, however future studies with larger case groups are necessary to confirm this association.
authors.affiliation: Division of Nutritional Epidemiology, The National Institute for Environmental Medicine, Karolinska InstitutetStockholm, Sweden; Obstetrics and Gynecology Epidemiology Center, Brigham and Women's HospitalBoston, Massachusetts, USA; Program in Epidemiology, Division of Public Health, Fred Hutchinson Cancer CenterSeattle, WA, USA.
authors.forename: Holly
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Harris
authors.affiliation: Division of Nutritional Epidemiology, The National Institute for Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: Alicja
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wolk
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Uppsala University Uppsala, Sweden.
authors.forename: Anders
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Larsson
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Biochimie, Biologie Moléculaire et Nutrition, Faculté de Pharmacie, Université d'Auvergne, Clermont-Ferrand Clermont-Ferrand, France.
authors.forename: Marie-Paule
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Vasson
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Biochimie, Biologie Moléculaire et Nutrition, Faculté de Pharmacie, Université d'Auvergne, Clermont-FerrandClermont-Ferrand, France; Oxidative Stress and Inflammation, Department of Public Health and Caring Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Uppsala UniversityUppsala, Sweden.
authors.forename: Samar
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Basu
keywords: Breast cancer; growth factors; tumor angiogenesis; vascular endothelial growth factor receptor