A population-based case-control study is proposed to quantitatively evaluate the predictive value of various features of screening mammograms in women under age 50 for risk of subsequent breast cancer. Approximately 983 cases and 878 controls with a history of one or more screening mammograms before age 50 will be identified from three prior and one concurrent case-control study in the Seattle area, and their prior mammograms will be obtained and read by a single radiologist. The mammographic features of possible predictive value that will be evaluated include: percent of breast with mammographic densities, whether the densities appear to represent glandular or non-glandular elements, mammographic calcifications (categorized according to their number, shape, and distribution), and Wolfe parenchymal pattern classification. The mammographic features in cases and controls will be compared, and both relative and absolute risks will be estimated in relation to the mammographic features of interest, combinations of these features, and these features in the presence and absence of other risk factors for breast cancer. This study will provide information as to the value of baseline mammograms in women under age 50 in predicting which women should be considered for intensive subsequent monitoring for breast cancer, and will provide further insight into the role that proliferative changes in the breast may play in the etiology of breast cancer.
| Thomas, David B; Carter, Rachel A; Bush Jr, William H et al. (2002) Risk of subsequent breast cancer in relation to characteristics of screening mammograms from women less than 50 years of age. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 11:565-71 |
