A recent study accepted for publication in Molecular
Endocrinology, a journal of The Endocrine Society, found that
perinatal exposure to environmentally relevant doses of
bisphenol A (BPA) alters long-term hormone response and breast
development in mice that may increase the propensity to develop
cancer. BPA, a man-made chemical produced and marketed largely
for specific industrial purposes, is detected in body fluids of
more than 90 percent of the human population. It was originally
synthesized as an estrogenic compound and there has been concern
that exposure to BPA could have developmental effects on various
hormone-responsive organs including the mammary gland. "I want
it to be clear that we do not provide evidence that BPA exposure
causes breast cancer per se," said Cathrin Brisken, MD, of the
Swiss Institute for Experimental Cancer Research and co-author
of the study. "We do provide evidence that BPA exposure alters
mammary gland development and that this may increase the
predisposition of the breast to