The Northeast/Mid-Atlantic Study: The National Cancer Institute
(NCI), in collaboration with the National Institute of
Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), is currently funding six
studies involving environmental exposures and breast cancer risk
in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.
Collectively these six studies are known as the Northeast/Mid-
Atlantic Study (NE/MA). The NE/MA was initially mandated by
Congress in the Cancer Registries Act in 1992. Language in the
appropriation for fiscal year 1994 gave NCI the discretion to
proceed or not to proceed with the study, based on its
scientific merit. In September 1993, NCI awarded six grants for
the 4-year study, which is budgeted at $6 million. Geographic
variation in age-adjusted breast cancer incidence and mortality
rates has been well documented. Higher rates of breast cancer
have been described for much of the Northeast, many mid-Atlantic
states, and some Midwestern states. Nine states-Connecticut,
Delaware, Maryland, Massachusett