New U research discovers link between obesity and breast cancer

From M, winter 2003

Obesity is considered a risk factor for breast cancer, and women who are obese tend, at the time of diagnosis, to have a more aggressive disease with a poorer prognosis.

Scientists have known about this connection between breast cancer and obesity, but were unsure what is responsible for it. New research led by University of Minnesota researcher Margot P. Cleary, discovered that leptin, the growth factor associated with weight gain, is found to promote breast cancer cell growth.

Research conducted at the University of Minnesota's Hormel Institute, in collaboration with researchers at the Mayo Clinic, also found that both normal and cancer cells grew more in the presence of leptin, but the response was stronger in the cancer cells.

Future studies should focus on determining whether the ability of breast tumors to absorb leptin is associated with other factors commonly assessed during diagnosis, like a tumor's ability to absorb and respond to estrogen, says Cleary.

See www.cancer.umn.edu or call the Cancer Center information line at 612-624-2620 or, within the five-state area, call 1-888-226-2376.