Outdoor air pollution and terminal duct lobular involution of the normal breast.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Exposure to certain outdoor air pollutants may be associated with a higher risk of breast cancer, though potential underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. We examined whether outdoor air pollution was associated with involution of terminal duct lobular units (TDLUs), the histologic site where most cancers arise and an intermediate marker of breast cancer risk.

Methods

Pathologist-enumerated TDLUs were assessed in H&E (hematoxylin and eosin)-stained breast tissue sections from 1904 US women ages 18-75 who donated to the Susan G. Komen Tissue Bank (2009-2012). The 2009 annual fine particulate matter < 2.5 μm in diameter (PM_2.5) total mass (μg/m³) at each woman's residential address was estimated from the Environmental Protection Agency's D

SUBMITTER: Niehoff NM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7513536 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature