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Why do
some women develop Breast Cancer earlier
Than others?
Newswise — Research currently underway at
The Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ)
and CINJ-Hamilton, which may unlock the
mysteries of why some women develop breast
cancer at an earlier age than others, has
been expanded to include more healthy
volunteers than previously sought. CINJ is a
Center of Excellence of UMDNJ-Robert Wood
Johnson Medical School.
According to state health statistics,
roughly 13 percent of women diagnosed with
breast cancer in New Jersey are younger than
age 45, while nearly half of the women
diagnosed with the disease and seen at CINJ
are not yet 50.
Investigators hope to shed light on these
figures through an ongoing clinical trial
whose goal is to identify genetic markers
for the disease. By including larger numbers
of healthy women in the study, the
researchers hope to pinpoint genetic
differences between women who develop breast
cancer and those who don’t.
It was recently discovered in the
laboratories of CINJ member Arnold J.
Levine, PhD, professor of pediatrics and
biochemistry at UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson
Medical School; and CINJ medical oncologist
Kim M. Hirshfield, MD, PhD, that some genes
may be associated with increased risk of
developing breast cancer, while others may
actually protect against the development of
the disease. These same gene variations may
also play a role in breast cancer outcomes.
Dr. Hirshfield, who also is an assistant
professor of medicine at UMDNJ-Robert Wood
Johnson Medical School, is the lead
investigator of the current study: “If we
are able to identify these slight
variations, we can learn more about how
breast cancer develops and its outcomes.
This information could one day lead to more
tailored treatment for those with the
disease and perhaps even better prevention
methods and screening recommendations.”
She notes the majority of women diagnosed
with breast cancer have no known risk
factors, and that only five to ten percent
of breast cancers are actually caused by
changes or mutations in known breast cancer
genes.
Study participants will have blood drawn for
laboratory analysis. The sample will be used
to obtain blood cells as well as DNA, the
material that makes up a person’s genes.
Facts
about one’s breast health and overall
medical history will be documented. Both the
blood sample and the clinical information
will be analyzed and saved for possible
future use.
Investigators are looking for more than
3,000 participants to complete the study.
Women and men aged 18 or older with no
history of breast cancer, with a diagnosis
of breast cancer, or a breast abnormality
indicating increased risk for development of
breast cancer are eligible to take part in
the trial, although other criteria must be
met. For more information on how to take
part, individuals should call the study team
at 732-235-7428.
Clinical trials, often called cancer
research studies, test new treatments and
new ways of using existing treatments for
cancer. At CINJ, researchers use these
studies to answer questions about how a
treatment affects the human body and to make
sure it is safe and effective.
There are several types of clinical trials
currently underway at CINJ, including those
that diagnose, treat, prevent, and manage
symptoms of cancer.
Many treatments used today, whether drugs or
vaccines; ways to do surgery or give
radiation therapy; or combinations of
treatments, are the results of past clinical
trials.
As New Jersey’s only National Cancer
Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer
Center, CINJ offers patients access to
treatment options not available at other
institutions within the state.
CINJ currently enrolls more than 1,000
patients on clinical trials, including
approximately 15 percent of all new adult
cancer patients and approximately 70 percent
of all pediatric cancer patients. Enrollment
in these studies nationwide is fewer than
five percent of all adult cancer patients.
About The Cancer Institute of New Jersey
The Cancer Institute of New Jersey (www.cinj.org)
is the state’s first and only National
Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive
Cancer Center, and is dedicated to improving
the prevention, detection, treatment and
care of patients with cancer. CINJ’s
physician-scientists engage in translational
research, transforming their laboratory
discoveries into clinical practice, quite
literally bringing research to life. The
Cancer Institute of New Jersey is a center
of excellence of UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson
Medical School. To support CINJ, please call
the Cancer Institute of New Jersey
Foundation at 1-888-333-CINJ.
The Cancer Institute of New Jersey Network
is comprised of hospitals throughout the
state and provides a mechanism to rapidly
disseminate important discoveries into the
community. Flagship Hospital: Robert Wood
Johnson University Hospital. Major Clinical
Research Affiliate Hospitals: Carol G. Simon
Cancer Center at Morristown Memorial
Hospital, Carol G. Simon Cancer Center at
Overlook Hospital, and Jersey Shore
University Medical Center. Affiliate
Hospitals: Bayshore Community Hospital,
CentraState Healthcare System, Cooper
University Hospital*, JFK Medical Center,
Raritan Bay Medical Center, Robert Wood
Johnson University Hospital at Hamilton (CINJ
at Hamilton), Saint Peter’s University
Hospital, Somerset Medical Center, Southern
Ocean County Hospital, The University
Hospital/UMDNJ-New Jersey Medical School*,
and University Medical Center at Princeton.
*Academic Affiliate
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