Reply to Schade G. Comment on Hess et al. "Assessing Agreement in Exposure Classifications between Proximity-Based Metrics and Air Monitoring Data in Epidemiology Studies of Unconventional Resource Development.".

We appreciate the comments by Dr [...

Response to Buonocore et al. Comments on Wendt Hess et al. "Assessing Agreement in Exposure Classification between Proximity-Based Metrics and Air Monitoring Data in Epidemiology Studies of Unconventional Resource Development." 2019, , 3055.

We appreciate the comments by Buonocore et al [...

Assessing Agreement in Exposure Classification between Proximity-Based Metrics and Air Monitoring Data in Epidemiology Studies of Unconventional Resource Development.

Recent studies of unconventional resource development (URD) and adverse health effects have been limited by distance-based exposure surrogates. Our study compared exposure classifications between air pollutant concentrations and "well activity" (WA) metrics, which are distance-based exposure proxies used in Marcellus-area studies to reflect variation in time and space of residential URD activity. We compiled Pennsylvania air monitoring data for benzene, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, fine particulates and sulfur dioxide, and combined this with data on nearly 9000 Pennsylvania wells.

Cancer stem cell markers are enriched in normal tissue adjacent to triple negative breast cancer and inversely correlated with DNA repair deficiency.

Introduction: We hypothesized that cells present in normal tissue that bear cancer stem cell markers may represent a cancer cell of origin or a microenvironment primed for tumor development, and that their presence may correlate with the clinically defined subtypes of breast cancer that show increased tumorigenicity and stem cell features. methods: Normal tissues sampled at least 5 cm from primary tumors (normal adjacent tissue) were obtained from 61 chemotherapy-naive patients with breast cancer treated with mastectomy. Samples were stained simultaneously with immunofluorescence for CD44/CD49f/CD133/2 stem cell markers.

A phase II neoadjuvant trial of anastrozole, fulvestrant, and gefitinib in patients with newly diagnosed estrogen receptor positive breast cancer.

Endocrine therapy in patients with breast cancer can be limited by the problem of resistance. Preclinical studies suggest that complete blockade of the estrogen receptor (ER) combined with inhibition of the epidermal growth factor receptor can overcome endocrine resistance. We tested this hypothesis in a phase II neoadjuvant trial of anastrozole and fulvestrant combined with gefitinib in postmenopausal women with newly diagnosed ER-positive breast cancer.

A review of body size and breast cancer risk in Hispanic and African American women.

Obesity is an epidemic in the United States, especially among Hispanics and African Americans. Studies of obesity and breast cancer risk have been conducted primarily in non-Hispanic whites. There have been few studies of the association between body mass index (BMI) or weight gain and the risk of breast cancer in minorities, and the results have been inconsistent.

Identification of novel kinase targets for the treatment of estrogen receptor-negative breast cancer.

Purpose: Previous gene expression profiling studies of breast cancer have focused on the entire genome to identify genes differentially expressed between estrogen receptor (ER) alpha-positive and ER-alpha-negative cancers.

Experimental Design: Here, we used gene expression microarray profiling to identify a distinct kinase gene expression profile that identifies ER-negative breast tumors and subsets ER-negative breast tumors into four distinct subtypes.

Results: Based on the types of kinases expressed in these clusters, we identify a cell cycle regulatory subset, a S6 kinase pathway cluster, an immunomodulatory kinase-expressing cluster, and a mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway cluster.

Effect of lapatinib on the development of estrogen receptor-negative mammary tumors in mice.

Lapatinib, a selective orally available inhibitor of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and ErbB2 receptor tyrosine kinases, is a promising agent for the treatment of breast cancer. We examined the effect of lapatinib on the development of mammary tumors in MMTV-erbB2 transgenic mice, which express wild-type ErbB2 under the control of the mouse mammary tumor virus promoter and spontaneously develop estrogen receptor (ER)-negative and ErbB2-positive mammary tumors by 14 months of age. Mice were treated from age 3 months to age 15 months with vehicle (n = 17) or lapatinib (30 or 75 mg/kg body weight; n = 16 mice per group) by oral gavage twice daily (6 d/wk).

The rates of chemotherapy-induced amenorrhea in patients treated with adjuvant doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide followed by a taxane.

Objective: Adjuvant chemotherapy in premenopausal women with breast cancer may induce amenorrhea, which can affect fertility, choice of hormonal therapy, and increase the risk of late toxicity. The incidence of chemotherapy-induced amenorrhea (CIA) resulting from doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide (AC) followed by a taxane (T) is poorly characterized.

Methods: We retrospectively surveyed women who were premenopausal and less than age 50 at initiation of chemotherapy to determine the rates of CIA in women receiving AC followed by T compared with AC alone.

Primary breast cancer phenotypes associated with propensity for central nervous system metastases.

Background: There is anecdotal evidence that the incidence of central nervous system (CNS) metastases in breast cancer patients is increasing. It is unclear whether specific tumor biological properties or the use of systemic therapies influence this risk.

Methods: Using a database of 10,782 patients, 2685 patients were identified who experienced recurrence distantly.

The adherence to practice guidelines in the assessment of bone health in women with chemotherapy-induced menopause.

Premenopausal women are diagnosed with 25% of all invasive breast cancers;adjuvant chemotherapy given to many of this population may induce menopause and increase the risk of osteoporosis development. Guidelines issued by the American Society of Clinical Oncology recommend regular assessment of bone health in such women. To assess appropriate attention to bone health, we performed a retrospective, cross-sectional survey of young women at high risk of osteoporosis secondary to chemotherapy-induced premature menopause.