Work and Breast Cancer: Recommendations to Address Research Needs.

A review of case-control, cohort, and meta-analytic studies on breast cancer, occupation, and work-related exposures from 2002 to 2017 revealed significant methodological limitations in the current literature. As part of our review, we tabulated the demographic and life history data, breast cancer risk factors, occupational history, and exposure estimates collected and analyzed in each study. Opportunities exist for future research to explore occupation and breast cancer more rigorously and with greater nuance by gathering specific data on age at diagnosis, menopausal status, tumor characteristics, demographics, breast cancer risk factors, and occupational histories, work roles and settings, and exposures.

Work and Female Breast Cancer: The State of the Evidence, 2002-2017.

The authors undertook a scoping review to assess the literature from 2002 to 2017 on the relationship between occupation and female breast cancer. Case-control, cohort, and meta-analytic studies suggest that women working as flight attendants, in medical professions, some production positions, sales and retail, and scientific technical staff are likely to have elevated risk of breast cancer. In addition, occupational exposures to night-shift work, ionizing radiation, some chemicals, job stress, and sedentary work may increase risk of breast cancer.

State of the evidence 2017: an update on the connection between breast cancer and the environment.

Background: In this review, we examine the continually expanding and increasingly compelling data linking radiation and various chemicals in our environment to the current high incidence of breast cancer. Singly and in combination, these toxicants may have contributed significantly to the increasing rates of breast cancer observed over the past several decades. Exposures early in development from gestation through adolescence and early adulthood are particularly of concern as they re-shape the program of genetic, epigenetic and physiological processes in the developing mammary system, leading to an increased risk for developing breast cancer.

Temporal variability of urinary di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate metabolites during a dietary intervention study.

Exposure to di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) may be related to adverse health effects including developmental and reproductive disorders, prompting interest in strategies for reducing human exposure. We previously reported a reduction of DEHP metabolite levels in composite urine samples by more than 50% (geometric means) during a 3-day dietary intervention avoiding plastics in food packaging, preparation, and storage. In the present study, we analyzed individual spot urine samples before compositing in order to evaluate temporal variability.

Tattoo pigment in axillary lymph node mimicking calcification of breast cancer.

A tattoo is defined as the intentional or accidental deposit of pigment into the skin. The phenomenon of skin tattooing is on the rise worldwide and complications of tattooing are increasingly being recognised in diagnostic and clinical medicine. We describe a case of calcification-like changes on mammography resembling that of breast malignancy as a result of tattoo pigment deposition in an axillary lymph node.

Mancozeb-induced behavioral deficits precede structural neural degeneration.

Manganese-containing fungicides like Mancozeb have been associated with neurodegenerative conditions like Parkinson's disease. We examined the behavioral damage and differential neuronal vulnerability resulting from Mancozeb exposure using Caenorhabditis elegans, an important mid-trophic level soil organism that is also a powerful model for studying mechanisms of environmental pollutant-induced neurodegenerative disease. The dopamine-mediated swim to crawl locomotory transition behavior is exquisitely vulnerable to Mancozeb, with functional impairment preceding markers of neuronal structural damage.

Food packaging and bisphenol A and bis(2-ethyhexyl) phthalate exposure: findings from a dietary intervention.

Background: Bisphenol A (BPA) and bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) are high-production-volume chemicals used in plastics and resins for food packaging. They have been associated with endocrine disruption in animals and in some human studies. Human exposure sources have been estimated, but the relative contribution of dietary exposure to total intake has not been studied empirically.

Exploration of gerontogenes in the nervous system: a multi-level neurogenomics laboratory module for an intermediate neuroscience and behavior course.

In this paper, we describe and assess a laboratory module that we introduced into an intermediate-level undergraduate course in Neuroscience and Behavior (NEUR201) in order to expose students to the new and rapidly developing neurogenomic and bioinformatics approaches to neuroscience research. The laboratory accompanies a topics-based, highly process-oriented course that explores research methodologies and integrative approaches to particular topics in the field. The laboratory comprises multi-week modules that expand upon the topics being covered in class.