Relation of hormones in ductal lavage fluid to age, tamoxifen treatment, and breast cancer risk

Abstract

Breast ductal lavage provides a source of both cells and fluid from the breast in a non-invasive manner. The fluid contains freely diffusible steroid hormones and other factors that may be secreted or released from the epithelial cells that line the alveoli and ducts of the breast as well as from myoepithelial cells, stomal cells, and immune cells that populate the breast. The purpose of the present study was to determine how perturbations of the system are reflected in ductal lavage fluid (DLF). We examined changes associated with menopausal status, tamoxifen treatment, and Gail model breast cancer risk scores.