How environmental, reproductive, and social factors relate to breast cancer before age 50
Environmental Exposures, Reproductive Windows, and Social Drivers of Young-Onset Breast Cancer
This work looks at whether things like air pollution, pesticides, and timing of life events such as puberty and pregnancy link to breast cancer in women diagnosed before age 50.
Quick facts
| Grant type | P30 center grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Oregon Health & Science University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Portland, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11337952 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you take part, researchers will use the Healthy Oregon Project to compare about 600 women diagnosed with breast cancer under age 50 to about 1,200 similar women without cancer. You would complete surveys about your menstrual and pregnancy history, breastfeeding, and social factors, and provide past and current residential addresses. Investigators will link those addresses to environmental data (for example air pollution, pesticides, and chemicals in water) and focus on key life windows like puberty, each pregnancy and the postpartum period, and the time before diagnosis. The goal is to see whether exposures during specific life stages or social disadvantages are more common in young-onset breast cancer cases than in matched controls.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are women diagnosed with breast cancer before age 50 and age- and race-matched women without breast cancer who can share reproductive history and past residential addresses.
Not a fit: People diagnosed with breast cancer after age 50, men, or those whose cancer is primarily due to known hereditary mutations may not get direct benefit from these findings.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could point to preventable exposures or timing-related risks that help guide public health actions and advice to reduce young-onset breast cancer risk.
How similar studies have performed: Previous studies have suggested links between pollution, reproductive timing, and breast cancer but results are inconsistent, so this larger, life-stage-focused approach builds on existing but still limited evidence.
Where this research is happening
Portland, United States
- Oregon Health & Science University — Portland, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Coussens, Lisa M — Oregon Health & Science University
- Study coordinator: Coussens, Lisa M
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.