Clinical follow-up studies of women with breast cystic disease indicate an increased risk of subsequent development of breast cancer, but the absolute risk marker has not yet been identified. It has been shown that bombesin/gastrin-releasing peptide can stimulate the proliferation of breast cancer cells in culture. In order to address the question of whether biological measurements might identify women with benign breast disease (BBD) at particular risk for breast cancer, analyses of bombesin and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) levels in tumor tissue from patients with breast cancer and BBD were carried out.
The groups of patients comprised 13 women with breast cancer (mean age 52.3 years), 12 women with fibroadenoma (mean age 47.5 years), 6 with microcystic breast disease (mean age 43.5 years) and 6 with gross cystic breast disease (mean age 47.2 years). Malignant and benign tumor tissues were collected after mastectomy or tumorectomy. Bombesin and DHEA-S levels was measured by RIA after homogenization and extraction of tissues. Bombesin concentrations were higher in women with breast cancer (83.67±21.07 ng/g) than in other groups, except women with gross cystic disease (79.6±10.9 ng/g). In contrast, tissue concentrations of DHEAS in women with breast cancer (130.5±34.5 μg/g) were lower with comparison to the others, except women with fibroadenoma (177.7±84.9 μg/g). Bombesin and DHEAS tissue concentrations showed significant negative correlation only in women with fibroadenoma. All values are means±S.D.
The significantly higher bombesin levels in tissues from women with breast cancer and in breast benign gross cystic disease (high risk of cancer) suggests the possible role of bombesin in the malignant process. Further studies are necessary to confirm these initial results.
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