ASSOCIATION OF CADMIUM WITH HUMAN BREAST-CANCER

The carcinogenic potential of cadmium might be affected by several fac tors such as smoking, hormones and presence of other metals, such as s elenium and zinc. Cadmium was analyzed in breast-fat tissue of 43 brea st cancer patients and 32 healthy control subjects. Patients were thor oughly characterized according to such variables as stage of cancer, s moking habits, and number of children. Correlation of cadmium levels w ith these variables, with hormone receptors, and with previously repor ted selenium and zinc were all analyzed. The mean cadmium concentratio n found in breast cancer patients (20.4 +/- 17.5 mu g/g) did not diffe r significantly from that of the healthy controls (31.7 +/- 39.4 mu g/ g). However, unexpectedly high concentrations of cadmium (3.2-86.9 vs. 0.1-160.4 mu g/g) were found in breast samples, which may indicate th at cadmium binding proteins exist in human breast tissue. Correlation of cadmium with smoking rate of cancer patients was positive (R(s) = 0 .0505, p < 0.05). Correlation of cadmium with estrogen receptors in br east cancer was suggestive (R(s), = 0.309,28 cases, P = 0.06). No corr elation was found with other trace elements such as selenium, zinc and copper. These results seem neither to prove nor to disprove the role of cadmium in breast cancer initiation, promotion or progression.