Epidemiology and pathophysiology of pregnancy-associated breast cancer: A review

Rossana Ruiz; Carmen Herrero; Kathrin Strasser-Weippl; Diego Touya; Jessica St Louis; Alexandra Bukowski; Paul E Goss

doi:10.1016/j.breast.2017.07.008

Epidemiology and pathophysiology of pregnancy-associated breast cancer: A review

Breast. 2017 Oct:35:136-141. doi: 10.1016/j.breast.2017.07.008. Epub 2017 Jul 18.

Authors

Rossana Ruiz¹, Carmen Herrero², Kathrin Strasser-Weippl³, Diego Touya⁴, Jessica St Louis⁵, Alexandra Bukowski⁶, Paul E Goss⁷

Affiliations

¹ Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Neoplásicas, Av. Angamos Este 2520, Surquillo, 15038, Peru; Global Cancer Institute, 25 New Chardon St., P.O. Box 8736, Boston, MA, 02114, USA; MGH-Avon Global Cancer Research Program, Massachusetts General Hospital, 10 North Grove St., Boston, MA, 02114, USA. Electronic address: rossana_rm@hotmail.com.
² Global Cancer Institute, 25 New Chardon St., P.O. Box 8736, Boston, MA, 02114, USA; Valencian Institute of Oncology, Carrer del Professor Beltrán Báguena, 8, 46009, València, Spain. Electronic address: carmendcn@hotmail.com.
³ Global Cancer Institute, 25 New Chardon St., P.O. Box 8736, Boston, MA, 02114, USA; Wilhelminen Hospital, Montleartstraße 37, 1160, Wien, Austria. Electronic address: kathrin.strasserweippl@gmail.com.
⁴ Global Cancer Institute, 25 New Chardon St., P.O. Box 8736, Boston, MA, 02114, USA; "Dr. Manuel Quintela" Hospital Clinics, Av Italia S/N, 11600, Montevideo, Uruguay. Electronic address: dtouya@gmail.com.
⁵ Global Cancer Institute, 25 New Chardon St., P.O. Box 8736, Boston, MA, 02114, USA; MGH-Avon Global Cancer Research Program, Massachusetts General Hospital, 10 North Grove St., Boston, MA, 02114, USA. Electronic address: jstlouis@mgh.harvard.edu.
⁶ Global Cancer Institute, 25 New Chardon St., P.O. Box 8736, Boston, MA, 02114, USA; MGH-Avon Global Cancer Research Program, Massachusetts General Hospital, 10 North Grove St., Boston, MA, 02114, USA. Electronic address: abukowski@mgh.harvard.edu.
⁷ Global Cancer Institute, 25 New Chardon St., P.O. Box 8736, Boston, MA, 02114, USA; MGH-Avon Global Cancer Research Program, Massachusetts General Hospital, 10 North Grove St., Boston, MA, 02114, USA. Electronic address: pgoss@mgh.harvard.edu.

PMID: 28732325
DOI: 10.1016/j.breast.2017.07.008

Abstract

The interactions between pregnancy and breast cancer (BC) are complex. Overall, parity is associated with long-term protective effects against BC, however in a small group of susceptible patients, pregnancy can lead to the development of a form of BC with a particularly poor prognosis. Pregnancy-associated breast cancer (PABC) remains an under-studied but important and growing clinical problem worldwide. Several aspects of PABC, including risk factors and mechanisms involved in its occurrence and aggressiveness, are incompletely understood. This review aims to summarize the epidemiology, biology, patho-physiology and clinical characteristics of PABC. We emphasize that age at first pregnancy, absence of breastfeeding and family history stand out as possible risk factors for developing PABC that ought to be incorporated into clinical tools for assessing a woman's risk of developing PABC. Also, improved methods for identifying women at risk of developing PABC in the general population are needed.

Keywords: Breast cancer; Lactation; Mammary gland; Pregnancy.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Age Factors
Breast Neoplasms / epidemiology*
Breast Neoplasms / pathology
Disease-Free Survival
Female
Humans
Pregnancy
Pregnancy Complications, Neoplastic / epidemiology*
Pregnancy Complications, Neoplastic / pathology
Pregnancy Outcome / epidemiology*