Hip bone density helps predict breast cancer risk

July 28, 2008

Measuring a woman's bone mineral density can provide additional information that may help more accurately determine a woman's risk of developing breast cancer. That is the conclusion of a new study published in the September 1, 2008 issue of CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society. The study's results suggest that incorporating bone mineral density tests with current risk assessments might significantly improve physicians' ability to predict breast cancer risk in older, postmenopausal women.

Bone mineral density testing is done to diagnose osteoporosis and help assess the risk of fractures. Low bone mineral density is linked to higher risk of fractures, while normal density is linked to lower risk of fractures. It is possible that over a woman's lifetime, hormonal and other factors that lead to higher bone mineral density (and lower risk of fractures) can also lead to higher risk of breast cancer. Studies have found an association between higher bone mineral density and higher breast cancer risk, and bone mineral density tests have been proposed as a potential addition to breast cancer risk models. This study, supported by Eli Lilly & Company, is the first to investigate the relationships among bone mineral density, traditional breast cancer risk assessment tool results, and breast cancer incidence among the same group of postmenopausal women.

To investigate these relationships, Dr. Zhao Chen of the University of Arizona Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health and her colleagues studied approximately 10,000 post-menopausal women (average age 63) taking part in the Women's Health Initiative, a study conducted in 40 clinical centers throughout the United States and supported by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health. The researchers assessed the women's initial bone mineral density level as well as their score on the Gail risk model, a well known and commonly used tool that estimates five year and lifetime risk of invasive breast cancer for women 35 years of age or older. They then followed the women for an average of approximately 8 years, noting which women developed breast cancer.

As expected, the study found that women with a high Gail score had a 35 percent increased risk of developing breast cancer compared to women with a lower Gail score. But the study also found a 25 percent increase in the risk of developing the disease with each unit increase in total hip bone mineral density t-score. While the two scores were independent of each other, women who had the highest scores on both assessments had a much higher risk in breast cancer.

The findings suggest that adding bone mineral density to currently used risk assessment tools may significantly improve the prediction of breast cancer risk. "Future studies should investigate whether incorporating bone mineral density and Gail score with other risk factors, such as breast density, can further improve the identification of women at high risk for developing breast cancer," the authors wrote. This study also suggests that bone mineral density is a potential alternative for predicting breast cancer risk in postmenopausal women if Gail score is not available. Additional studies are needed to determine if the results from this investigation are applicable to a broader group of women, including minorities. The findings do not change the use of bone mineral density testing to diagnose osteoporosis or the need to treat osteoporosis in order to reduce the risk of fractures.

American Cancer Society

---

---

	Fight Now: Eat & Live Proactively Against Breast Cancer by Aaron Tabor, MD Dr. Tabor’s FIGHT NOW book provides information on lifestyle choices that might improve breast health and overall health. The purpose of Dr. Tabor’s medical research is to empower you to become proactive against breast cancer now with specific food and lifestyle choices. We can make specific food and lifestyle choices to lower the risk of getting breast cancer, risk of recurrence, and risk of dying from breast cancer. The only alternative is to be reactive after you get breast cancer or have a recurrence of breast cancer. The choice is clear Whether you are currently fighting breast cancer; are a survivor; or, simply trying to lower your risk, Dr. Tabor’s FIGHT NOW book will give you concise, critical information that you can start using today. You don’t have to read...
	Just Get Me Through This!: A Practical Guide to Coping with Breast Cancer by Deborah A. Cohen (Author), Robert M. Gelfand (Author)
	The Breast Cancer Companion: A Guide for the Newly Diagnosed by Nancy Sokolowski (Author), Valerie Rossi (Author), Richard Zelkowitz (Foreword) Named a 2010 Best Consumer Health by the American Journal of Nursing The Breast Cancer Companion is a step-by-step guide through treatment for the 2 million women living with breast cancer in the United States. It provides ample space and encouragement to record questions, thoughts and feelings, doctor's appointments, medications, and contact information for the oncology team and others. The book also covers myriad other details that are often lost in the trauma and emotion of diagnosis and illness. The book helps women to be well-organized, well-informed, and have peace of mind so that, even in the midst of their breast cancer treatment they remain focused on what matters most: becoming well and achieving a healthy outcome. Special features include a calendar to help with...
	Chicken Soup for the Breast Cancer Survivor's Soul: Stories to Inspire, Support and Heal (Chicken Soup for the Soul) by Jack Canfield (Author), Mark Victor Hansen (Author), Mary Olsen Kelly (Author) Your support group in a book, filled with boundless strength and profound hope - until the fight is won. Along with the shock, fear and loss many women face upon a breast cancer diagnosis comes unexpected strength, wisdom, and strong networks of sharing, support and healing. In Chicken Soup for the Breast Cancer Survivor's Soul, survivors and their family members talk openly about how difficult their fight with breast cancer has been and how they made it through the dark times with a belief in a higher power and the support of those closest to them. Find strength in the encouraging stories of how family members confront their fears and show genuine affection for one another through gestures such as a granddaughter cutting the hair off of all her dolls so that they will look more like...
	Breast Cancer Survival Manual, Fourth Edition: A Step-by-Step Guide for the Woman With Newly Diagnosed Breast Cancer by John Link (Author) A completely updated edition of the definitive guide for patients with breast cancer The new fourth edition of The Breast Cancer Survival Manual provides essential updates on treatment and care, enhancing the basic information that has made this the most trusted guide for women diagnosed with breast cancer for the past decade. This edition includes the most current advice on • getting a second opinion: why it's important, what questions    to ask, and how to decide which team of doctors is best for you • updates on genetic testing and how doctors are using    the results to tailor care for each patient • navigating new types of radiation, the herceptin    breakthrough, and improved reconstruction surgeries Conscious of the rapidly evolving spectrum of...
	Breast Cancer: 50 Essential Things to Do by Greg Anderson (Author), Erica A. Harvey (Introduction), Christine Northrup MD (Introduction) 2.5 million women in the U.S. have had a breast cancer diagnosis; more than 200,000 women are diagnosed each year. While recovery and survival rates have improved, selecting a treatment plan can be confusing and overwhelming.Breast Cancer: 50 Essential Things You Can Do offers a roadmap for women facing breast cancer. Cancer-survivor Greg Anderson, a recognized pioneer in the field of integrated cancer care, has guided tens-of-thousands of cancer patients to health and healing over the past 25 years, through his books and his Cancer Recovery Foundation. In this new book he offers critical information about the major issues patients face following a breast cancer diagnosis, and shows how to implement a comprehensive recovery plan that maximizes opportunity for healing and recovery.This is...
	Uplift: Secrets from the Sisterhood of Breast Cancer Survivors by Barbara Delinsky (Author) Barbara Delinsky's 1998 bestseller, COAST ROAD, featured a heroine who was a breast cancer survivor. To this day, it is the book that generates more mail than any of her others. That fact, combined with Barbara's ongoing commitment to breast cancer research, led her to her first book of nonfiction. Not a medical book -- there is no discussion of the pros and cons of a particular treatment or hospital or doctor -- UPLIFT is rather a collection of hundreds of pieces of practical and inspiring tidbits collected from survivors and their on everything from what kind of deodorant to use during radiation treatment to the best kinds of exercise aftloved ones. Think of it as "The Girlfriends' Guide" to breast cancer, with hints on everything from what kind of deodorant to use during radiation...
	Dr. Susan Love's Breast Book, 5th Edition (A Merloyd Lawrence Book) by Susan M. Love MD (Author), Karen Lindsey (Contributor) Dr. Susan Love’s Breast Book has long been the bible for the newly diagnosed. In this completely revised fifth edition, it also becomes a guide for those at risk of getting breast cancer, survivors interested in the consequences of their treatment, and anyone who wants to understand the new research about how the local environment influences the manifestations and treatments of many different kinds of breast cancer. Major advances being made in genetic research today mean that prevention and treatment can work not only to get rid of mutated cells (through chemo or surgery), but also to change the environment around the cells (through hormone therapy, exercise, and stress reduction). Among other promising developments discussed are advances in imaging, recognition of breast density as a...
	Dancing With Fear: Tips and Wisdom from Breast Cancer Survivors by Leila Peltosaari (Author) Tips and wisdom from breast cancer survivors. 125 women share their real-life experience through treatments, recovery, aftermath, and reclaiming life after breast cancer. Sections include: > Finding the tumor > Dealing with doctors and surgeries > Lymphedema > Chemotherapy and radiation > Tamoxifen and aromatase inhibitors > Fear of recurrence > Complementary and alternative treatments > Optimism and pessimism > Support and humor > Spirituality and facing death
	The Breast Cancer Caregiver's Survival Guide: Practical Tips for Supporting Your Wife through Breast Cancer by Rick and Becky Kraemer One of the worst possible things has happened to you. You’ve gotten the bad news from your wife’s doctor, and the two of you are either facing breast cancer treatments, or are in the middle of them now. We’re here to help. In 2000, Becky was diagnosed with breast cancer, and completed extensive treatments (surgery, chemotherapy, radiation, hormone therapy). She is currently in remission and leading a normal, healthy, and athletic lifestyle. This booklet is in response to the questions we’ve received from men looking for practical advice on supporting their wives through this difficult time.