CONJUGATED BILE-ACIDS IN BREAST CYST FLUIDS - RELATIONSHIP TO CATION-RELATED CYST SUBPOPULATIONS

Gross cystic breast disease is a benign lesion occurring in 7% of adul t women. Apocrine changes of epithelium lining the breast cysts cause a higher risk of developing breast cancer. According to the possible r ole of bile acids in the pathogenesis of cancer, we analysed breast cy st fluids aspirated from 96 women for distribution of conjugated bile acid concentrations in the two subsets of breast cysts. Bile acid leve ls were correlated to K+ concentrations (P < 0.0001) and mean value wa s higher in Na/K < 3 metabolically active apocrine cyst as compared wi th Na/K > 3 flattened cyst (P < 0.001). Because bile acids could play an important role in the pathogenesis and growth of breast cancer, the significantly higher intracystic concentrations of these carcinogen c ompounds in apocrine Type I cysts might provide a further biological e xplanation as to why women with apocrine changes may be at higher brea st cancer risk and could be useful for the biochemical knowledge occur ring in the different functional stages of the gross breast cysts. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd.