List of breast carcinogenic substances

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  1. Cadmium, a highly persistent heavy metal, has been categorized as a probable human carcinogen by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Primary exposure sources include food and tobacco smoke. Cadmium mimics the in vivo effects of estrogen in the uterus and mammary. Exposure to cadmium may be a direct risk factor for developing breast cancer in a woman and her unborn baby;
  2. DES (diethylstilbestrol is a synthetic form of estrogen. It has been used between the early 1940s and 1971. Pregnant Women took DES to prevent certain complications. Research found that they are at a slightly higher risk for breast cancer, although this does not appear to be the case for their daughters who were exposed to DES before birth. However, more studies are needed;
  3. Some studies suggest a slightly higher risk of breast cancer among women who drink alcohol;
  4. Organochlorines are synthetic chemicals containing chlorine and carbon. Many of them are xenoestrogens or estrogens mimics. They include many chemicals present in pesticides, plastics, PCBs, pulp and paper manufacturing, sewage treatment and solvents. These chemicals can enhance human breast cancer cell proliferation, and promote transformation and invasiveness of human breast cancer cells.
  5. "Shiftwork that involves circadian disruption" was listed, in 2007, as a probable carcinogen by the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer. (IARC Press release No. 180).[1] Multiple studies have documented a link between night shift work and the increased incidence of breast cancer.[2][3][4][5] Circadian disruption by exposure to light at night suppresses the production of the hormone melatonin which leads to reduction in cellular immune defense and surveillance necessary for protection from development of cancers. Melatonin also seems to have a direct protective effect against cancer possibly in part because of its strong anti oxidant properties.[6]

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ IARC Press release No. 180.
  2. ^ Schernhammer E, Schulmeister K. Melatonin and cancer risk: does light at night compromise physiologic cancer protection by lowering serum melatonin levels? Br J Cancer 2004;90:941–943.
  3. ^ Hansen J. Increased breast cancer risk among women who work predominantly at night. Epidemiology 2001; 12:74–77.
  4. ^ Hansen J. Light at night, shiftwork, and breast cancer risk.J Natl Cancer Inst 2001; 93:1513–1515.
  5. ^ Schernhammer E, Laden F, Speizer FE et al. Rotating night shifts and risk of breast cancer in women participating in the nurses' health study. J Natl Cancer Inst 2001; 93:1563–1568.
  6. ^ Navara KJ, Nelson RJ (2007) The dark side of light light at night: physiological, epidemiological, and ecological consequences. J. Pineal Res. 2007; 43:215–224

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