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Pregnancy and its association with breast cancer tumor subtypes

Parity is associated with a short–term increase in breast cancer (BC) risk followed by a long–term decrease in risk. BC diagnosed 5–7 years after a completed pregnancy is associated with worse outcomes. BC is not a single disease. The dual effect of pregnancy could account for the BC characteristics at presentation (i.e. younger age and more advanced disease) and worse outcomes observed among Hispanics, relative to Non–Hispanic Whites. The purpose of this study was to investigate the association of reproductive characteristics by tumor subtype in a case series of women of Mexican–descent. Cases diagnosed ≤10 years following a birth had nearly 3 times the odds of a diagnosis with HER2+ tumors, relative to ER+/PR+ tumors. HER2+ tumors are associated with reduced survival compared to ER+/PR+ tumors. Diagnosis within a recent pregnancy may contribute to the aggressiveness of BC observed among women of Mexican descent ≤50 years of age.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:arizona.edu/oai:arizona.openrepository.com:10150/144593
Date January 2011
CreatorsCruz, Giovanna Ibeth
ContributorsMartinez, Maria E, Sherrill, Duane, Thompson, Patricia
PublisherThe University of Arizona.
Source SetsUniversity of Arizona
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeElectronic Thesis, text
RightsCopyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author.

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