Obesity and Breast Cancer: Kristy Brown, PhD, co-leader of The University of Kansas Cancer Center’s Cancer Prevention and Control research program, has been awarded a prestigious four-year, $800,000 grant from the V Foundation for Cancer Research. The grant will fund her efforts to understand how obesity may contribute to breast cancer risk, and how lifestyle changes like weight loss and exercise might help prevent it.
Obesity is one of the few modifiable risk factors for breast cancer, particularly in postmenopausal women. Research shows that excess body fat increases estrogen and insulin levels, both of which have been linked to cancer development. These effects are especially harmful for women who are already at elevated risk, such as those with a BRCA1 gene mutation or a family history of breast cancer.
Dr. Brown and her team will study how obesity affects mitochondria, the tiny powerhouses inside cells, and if restoring mitochondria function can help prevent cancer from developing. Early findings suggest that obesity disrupts mitochondria, which in turn may cause DNA damage. Exercise and weight loss appear to improve mitochondrial health in other tissues.
Using cells and tissue from women with BRCA1 mutations, as well as preclinical models, Dr. Brown will look at whether similar improvements influence breast tissue health, as well as if these improvements translate into lower cancer risk.
“This grant gives us the opportunity to explore a new path to breast cancer prevention and eventually apply these findings to a clinical trial,” Dr. Brown said. “If we can understand how obesity damages mitochondria and how to reverse it, we may be able to help high-risk women lower their risk of developing breast cancer.” Newswise/SP