Study Links Birth Size and Breast Cancer *Reuters*
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LONDON (Sept. 30) - Women who were bigger and longer babies may be more
likely to develop breast cancer, researchers reported on Tuesday.
The study adds to evidence that, at least in some cases, something that
happens in the womb may cause cancer later in life.
Previous research into links between birth size and breast cancer have
proved inconsistent, but the findings published in the Public Library of
Science journal PLoS Medicine are strong evidence that the two may be
related.
"These findings provide strong evidence that birth size -- in particular
birth length -- is a marker of a woman's breast cancer risk in adulthood,
although the mechanisms underlying this association are unclear," Isabel dos
Santos Silva of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and
colleagues wrote.
Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths among women worldwide,
according to the American Cancer Society. The group estimates about 465,000
women died of breast cancer globally in 2007, and 1.3 million new cases were
diagnosed.
Declining death rates from breast cancer in developed countries have been
attributed to early detection through mammography screening and to improved
treatment.
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Dos Santos Silva and colleagues examined 32 studies comprising 600,000
women, mainly in developed countries. Their analysis included more than
22,000 women who had breast cancer.
After considering established risk factors such as age and late menopause,
the researchers found a strong association with birth size, birth length and
head circumference. Of the three, birth length showed the strongest link.
"The amount by which birth size affected breast cancer risk was not affected
by allowing for other established risk factors," the researchers wrote.
For example, women with recorded birth weights of 4 kilograms or more had a
12 percent higher chance of breast cancer than babies weighing 3 to 3.5
kilograms at birth, the study found.
The link between breast cancer and birth size appeared smaller when compared
with other risk factors. The researchers estimated that birth size may be
responsible for up to 5 percent of all breast cancers in women up to the age
of 80.
Some research has linked hormones such as estrogen and human growth hormone
with cancer.
The researchers noted age of puberty and adult height are also associated
with breast cancer risk, and growth as a fetus can predict a girl's growth,
so there could be a link there.
"The maternal and/or fetal hormonal environment associated with large birth
size may alter programing of the breast, making it more susceptible to
cancer," the researchers wrote.
--
"Usually when people are sad, they don't do anything. They just cry over
their condition. But when they get angry, they bring about a change."
- Malcolm X, Malcolm X Speaks, 1965
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