How does early pregnancy lower breast cancer risk? Odd ce...

What’s Happening

Alright so Suspicious cells build up in mice that haven’t given birth, a new study finds.

They could help explain a longstanding mystery of breast cancer biology. News Health & Medicine How does early pregnancy lower breast cancer risk? (and honestly, same)

Odd cells could offer clues In mice, pregnancy appears to slow the buildup of suspicious mammary cells For women, giving birth by their 20s may cut lifetime breast cancer risk, but no one knows how.

The Details

New clues may come from abnormal cells in mice. Org/pexels By Meghan Rosen 4 hours ago this: via email (Opens in new window) Email on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit on X (Opens in new window) X Print (Opens in new window) Print A cellular Frankenstein’s monster has breathed new life into an old breast cancer mystery.

For decades, scientists have known that early-in-life pregnancy somehow dials down the risk of breast cancer as women age. No one has pinpointed how, but a group of strange mammary cells could help crack the case.

Why This Matters

In female mice, these cells build up over time — unless an animal has been pregnant, scientists report January 21 in Nature Communications . That’s a hint that pregnancy is blocking the buildup, and that ­might be a good thing. The cells have undergone an identity crisis that might spur cancer progression, says Shaheen Sikandar, a cancer and stem cell biologist at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

This could have implications for future research in this area.

Key Takeaways

• If the cells do indeed nudge tissue toward disease , preventing their accumulation might also prevent breast cancer, she says.
• “We are trying to see why these cells are showing up, and if there’s a way we can stop them.
• ” For women, giving birth by their 20s may cut lifetime breast cancer risk, though estimates of how much vary.
• Some clues about the phenomenon come from young mice, whose mammary tissues undergo molecular changes after pregnancy.

The Bottom Line

But no one had a good sense of what was going on in older animals, after the pregnancy protection effect kicks in, Sikandar says. Suspicious hybrid cells (shown in orange) build up among mouse mammary cells when exposed to an inflammatory molecule.

Thoughts? Drop them below.