Journal of the National Cancer Institute
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J. Natl. Cancer Inst. · Oct 2001
Rotating night shifts and risk of breast cancer in women participating in the nurses' health study.
Melatonin shows potential oncostatic action, and light exposure during night suppresses melatonin production. There is little information, however, about the direct effect of night work on the risk of cancer. We investigated the effect of night work in breast cancer. ⋯ Women who work on rotating night shifts with at least three nights per month, in addition to days and evenings in that month, appear to have a moderately increased risk of breast cancer after extended periods of working rotating night shifts.
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J. Natl. Cancer Inst. · Oct 2001
ReviewSelective estrogen receptor modulation and reduction in risk of breast cancer, osteoporosis, and coronary heart disease.
The recognition of selective estrogen receptor modulation in the laboratory has resulted in the development of two selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs), tamoxifen and raloxifene, for clinical application in healthy women. SERMs are antiestrogenic in the breast but estrogen-like in the bones and reduce circulating cholesterol levels. SERMs also have different degrees of estrogenicity in the uterus. ⋯ The study of tamoxifen and raloxifene (STAR) trial is currently comparing the ability of these SERMs to reduce breast cancer incidence in high-risk postmenopausal women. There is intense interest in understanding the molecular mechanism(s) of action of SERMs at target sites in a woman's body. An understanding of the targeted actions of this novel drug group will potentially result in the introduction of new multifunctional medicines with applications as preventive agents or treatments of breast cancer and endometrial cancer, coronary heart disease, and osteoporosis.