What are the results of the Breast Cancer and the Environment on Long Island Study?
The results of this study are reported in three scientific papers published in August 2002 by Marilie D. Gammon, Ph.D., University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and her coworkers. The first paper describes the full study population and research methods, and the established risk factors for breast cancer found in the group. It appears in Breast Cancer Research and Treatment.1 Many of the well-known breast cancer risk factors were confirmed in the study. These risk factors included increasing age, having a family history of breast cancer, having a first child at a later age (age 28 or older in this study), never having given birth to a child, and having higher income. In addition, some recognized risk factors were not found to be associated with increased risk for breast cancer among all women in the study. These included early age at beginning of menstruation (menarche) and having attained a higher level of education. The researchers are conducting more detailed analyses to further
