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

Abstract 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. Abstract 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. In the 8 years since we last published a comprehensive review of the relevant literature, hundreds of new papers have appeared supporting this link, and in this update, the evidence on this topic is more extensive and of better quality than that previously available. Conclusion Increasing evidence from epidemiological studies, as well as a better understanding of mechanisms linking toxicants with development of breast cancer, all reinforce the conclusion that exposures to these substances – many of which are found in common, everyday products and byproducts – may lead to increased risk of developing breast cancer. Moving forward, attention to methodological limitations, especially in relevant epidemiological and animal models, will need to be addressed to allow clearer and more direct connections to be evaluated

Paths to Prevention: California Breast Cancer Primary Prevention Plan

Paths to Prevention: The California Breast Cancer Primary Prevention Plan is the first ever comprehensive primary prevention plan for breast cancer.This action plan to reduce 23 breast cancer risk factors offers systemic interventions, rather than individual actions, to stem rising breast cancer rates.

Paths to Prevention: California Breast Cancer Primary Prevention Plan

Paths to Prevention: The California Breast Cancer Primary Prevention Plan is the first ever comprehensive primary prevention plan for breast cancer.This action plan to reduce 23 breast cancer risk factors offers systemic interventions, rather than individual actions, to stem rising breast cancer rates.

Supplemental Material3 - Supplemental material for Work and Female Breast Cancer: The State of the Evidence, 2002–2017

<p>Supplemental material, Supplemental Material3 for Work and Female Breast Cancer: The State of the Evidence, 2002–2017 by Connie L. Engel, M. Sharima Rasanayagam, Janet M. Gray and Jeanne Rizzo in NEW SOLUTIONS: A Journal of Environmental and Occupational Health Policy</p

Supplemental Material1 - Supplemental material for Work and Female Breast Cancer: The State of the Evidence, 2002–2017

<p>Supplemental material, Supplemental Material1 for Work and Female Breast Cancer: The State of the Evidence, 2002–2017 by Connie L. Engel, M. Sharima Rasanayagam, Janet M. Gray and Jeanne Rizzo in NEW SOLUTIONS: A Journal of Environmental and Occupational Health Policy</p

Supplemental table - Supplemental material for Work and Breast Cancer: Recommendations to Address Research Needs

<p>Supplemental material, Supplemental table for Work and Breast Cancer: Recommendations to Address Research Needs by Connie L. Engel, M. Sharima Rasanayagam, Janet M. Gray and Jeanne Rizzo in NEW SOLUTIONS: A Journal of Environmental and Occupational Health Policy</p

Supplemental Material2 - Supplemental material for Work and Female Breast Cancer: The State of the Evidence, 2002–2017

<p>Supplemental material, Supplemental Material2 for Work and Female Breast Cancer: The State of the Evidence, 2002–2017 by Connie L. Engel, M. Sharima Rasanayagam, Janet M. Gray and Jeanne Rizzo in NEW SOLUTIONS: A Journal of Environmental and Occupational Health Policy</p

Translating community-based participatory research into broadscale sociopolitical change: insights from a coalition of women firefighters, scientists, and environmental health advocates

BackgroundWe report on community-based participatory research (CBPR) initiated by women firefighters in order to share successful elements that can be instructive for other community-engaged research. This CBPR initiative, known as the Women Worker Biomonitoring Collaborative (WWBC) is the first we are aware of to investigate links between occupational exposures and health outcomes, including breast cancer, for a cohort of exclusively women firefighters.MethodsIn order to be reflective of the experiences and knowledge of those most intimately involved, this article is co-authored by leaders of the research initiative. We collected leaders' input via recorded meeting sessions, emails, and a shared online document. We also conducted interviews (N = 10) with key research participants and community leaders to include additional perspectives.ResultsFactors contributing to the initiative's success in enacting broadscale social change and advancing scientific knowledge include (1) forming a diverse coalition of impacted community leaders, labor unions, scientists, and advocacy organizations, (2) focusing on impacts at multiple scales of action and nurturing different, yet mutually supportive, goals among partners, (3) adopting innovative communication strategies for study participants, research partners, and the broader community, (4) cultivating a prevention-based ethos in the scientific research, including taking early action to reduce community exposures based on existing evidence of harm, and (5) emphasizing co-learning through all the study stages. Furthermore, we discuss external factors that contribute to success, including funding programs that elevate scientist-community-advocacy partnerships and allow flexibility to respond to emerging science-policy opportunities, as well as institutional structures responsive to worker concerns.ConclusionsWhile WWBC shares characteristics with other successful CBPR partnerships, it also advances approaches that increase the ability for CBPR to translate into change at multiple levels. This includes incorporating partners with particular skills and resources beyond the traditional researcher-community partnerships that are the focus of much CBPR practice and scholarly attention, and designing studies so they support community action in the initial stages of research. Moreover, we emphasize external structural factors that can be critical for CBPR success. This demonstrates the importance of critically examining and advocating for institutional factors that better support this research