Apples for Health- Breast density may indicate cancer risk

Breast density may indicate cancer risk

TORONTO, April 30 (UPI) -- A mother-daughter study using magnetic resonance to measure breast density may help predict the risk of breast cancer in middle age, U.S. researchers said.

Principal investigator Dr. Norman Boyd, a scientist at The Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research at Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto, initially verified breast density -- mammographic density -- as a strong risk factor for breast cancer in middle-age and older women.

The study, published online in Lancet Oncology, indicated that risk assessment using less harmful techniques, such as magnetic resonance imaging instead of X-ray, should start much earlier in life.

"It is known that the breast is most susceptible to the effects of carcinogens at early ages. Our findings suggest that differences in breast tissue composition in early life may be a potential mechanism for this increased susceptibility," Boyd said in a statement. "By identifying the environmental and genetic factors that influence breast tissue composition in early life we may be able to develop safe and effective methods of prevention."