Researchers to Study Link Between Breast Cancer and Social Status

Researchers in Scotland have begun examining frozen tissue from 600 women diagnosed with breast cancer between 1980 and 1993 in an effort to better understand the link between social status and the development of breast cancer.

"It has been known and accepted for some time that women from more affluent backgrounds are more at risk of developing this disease," said Professor William Miller, lead researcher at Western General Hospital in Edinburgh. "However, less well documented is the 'reverse phenomenon,' where, once diagnosed, more affluent women do better than the socially deprived.

"An important factor influencing outcome is the extent of tumor spread, but even women who apparently have the same extent of disease may survive for different lengths of time," Miller said. "Other factors are clearly involved, including social background; women coming from deprived areas do less well than those who are more affluent."

The researchers will study the tissue samples for hormone levels, carcinogens and agents known to cause genetic damage, hoping to establish whether socially deprived women have higher levels of these agents in their cancerous tumors.

Researchers speculate that affluent women may be at a higher risk for developing breast cancer because they delay childbirth and have fewer children than low income women do, with pregnancy offering the body a rest from high estrogen levels, known to be a risk factor for the disease.

Researchers suggest that affluent women may fare better in fighting breast cancer because they may have their cancer diagnosed earlier than lower income women, have better relationships with their physicians, and also have better access to screenings.

Other sources: Western General Hospital, Edinburgh