Alcohol and breast cancer risk ?

[R.B.]

I do not have access to the full trial and am unable to understand the implications of this. As usual I came this on whilst looking for something completely different.

Can somebody translate this with more certainty? Are "homozygous wild-type carriers" the general population? IF they are this trial seems to be suggesting alchohol intake does increase the risk of BC.

More questions!!

RB

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=ShowDetailView&TermToSearch=16959787&ordinalpos=3&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsP anel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

Peroxisome profilerator-activated receptorgamma2 Pro12Ala, interaction with alcohol intake and NSAID use, in relation to risk of breast cancer in a prospective study of Danes.
Vogel U, Christensen J, Nexø BA, Wallin H, Friis S, Tjønneland A.

National Institute of Occupational Health, Copenhagen, Denmark.


Abstract.

"Alcohol consumption was associated with a 1.21-fold increased risk of breast cancer per 10 g alcohol/day (95% CI=1.06-1.35) among homozygous wild-type carriers, whereas alcohol was not associated with breast cancer risk among variant allele carriers (P for interaction=0.005)."

[Becky]

See.......... it pays not to be wild!

Seriously though, in other conditions - or really any gene combination, 50% of a population has heterozygoticity - say the simple punnet square of pp X PP equals all Pp but Pp X Pp = 1 PP, 2 Pp and 1 pp. Therefore, if the "wild" type is P and you need PP, then 75% would not be at risk. This is just my thoughts and nothing concrete.

[R.B.]

Thanks Becky that is useful.

But does that argument equally always apply to a "single" gene as against the whole genome. Can a population in the main have just have one version of a single gene which would mean for most it was a PP and PP situation.

I have no idea. Just asking?

Also whilst on the subject how frequent are inherited genetic mutations in very general terms?

And where mutations are spotted in those with cancer how do you know if the mutation is inherited or the result of the cancer - and how do they know which is which?

So many questions!

Many thanks

RB