Report finds half of
breast cancer causes
may be environmental
SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 24 /U.S.
Newswire/ -- Women in the United States still have a high
risk of breast cancer even if they have no genetic
predisposition or other commonly accepted risk factors for
the disease, according to a report released today.
"State of the Evidence
2006: What Is the Connection Between the Environment and
Breast Cancer?" (SOE) reports that as many as 50 percent of
breast cancer cases remain unexplained by either genetics or
lifestyle factors, such as a woman's age at her first
full-term pregnancy or alcohol consumption. The report is
available online at
http://www.bcaction.org/SOE or
http://www.breastcancerfund.org.
Instead, the report says,
"compelling scientific evidence points to some of the
100,000 synthetic chemicals in use today as contributing to
the development of breast cancer, either by altering hormone
function or gene expression."
SOE, which reviews and
analyzes nearly 350 scientific studies on environmental
links to breast cancer, was jointly published by Breast
Cancer Fund (BCF) and Breast Cancer Action (BCA). The report
was peer-reviewed by leading U.S. scientists. This fourth
edition reports findings from more than 46 new studies
published during 2004 and 2005.
In 2005, breast cancer was
expected to kill more than 40,000 women in the United
States-one death every 13 minutes-and more than 410,000
women worldwide. U.S. women now have a one in seven chance
of being diagnosed with breast cancer during their
lifetimes, a risk that has nearly tripled in the past four
decades.
"Many factors that
contribute to the disease lie far beyond a woman's personal
control and can only be addressed by a revolution in
thinking on the parts of government and the private sector,"
said Jeanne Rizzo, BCF executive director.
"Women living with and at
risk for breast cancer need public policies that will put
our health first and protect us from exposures to toxic
chemicals," said Lisa Wanzor, BCA acting executive director.
The report offers a
10-point plan to reduce the risk of breast cancer and
ultimately end the epidemic. Among those recommendations:
-- Establish environmental
health tracking programs to monitor toxic exposures at state
and federal levels;
-- Protect workers from
hazardous exposures;
-- Hold corporations
accountable for hazardous practices and offer local, state
and federal incentives for clean, green practices.