Breast cancer and heart disease may have common roots
Women who are at risk for breast cancer may also be at greater risk for heart disease, new research has found.
The majority of women with hereditary breast and ovarian cancer have a mutated form of the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes, which normally suppress the growth of breast and ovarian tumours.
Dr. Subodh Verma, a cardiac surgeon at St. Michael's Hospital, said his research team was surprised to discover the genes also regulate heart function.
Following a heart attack, mice with the mutated BRCA1 gene had a three-to-five times higher rate of death. This was largely due to the development of profound heart failure, possibly because their heart attacks were twice as severe as those in mice who did not have the mutated gene.
Read the whole article at ecancer.org
Reference
- Shukla, P. C, Singh, K. K., et al. (2011). BRCA1 is an essential regulator of heart function and survival following myocardial infarction Nature Communications DOI: 10.1038/ncomms1601
- Singh, K. K., Shukla, P. C, et al. (2011). BRCA2 deficiency exaggerates doxorubicin-induced cardiomyocyte apoptosis and cardiac failure Journal of Biological Chemistry DOI: 10.1074/jbc.M111.292664
Keywords: BRCA1, BRCA2, breast cancer, heart disease, heart attack, heart failure
21. 12. 2011 ecancer.org
