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Objective We previously reported that total suspended particulates exposure (a measure of air pollution) at the time of birth was related to increased postmenopausal breast cancer risk. In this study, we examined breast cancer risk in relation to exposure to air pollution from traffic emissions throughout life. Methods We conducted a case-control study of breast cancer. Participants were women, aged 35-79, residents of Erie and Niagara Counties. Cases had incident, primary, histologically confirmed breast cancer. Controls were randomly selected from the population, frequency-matched on age and race. Using lifetime residential histories, exposure to traffic emissions was modeled for each woman using her residence as a proxy. Estimates were calculated for residence at menarche, her first birth, and 20 and 10 years before interview. Unconditional logistic regression was used to calculate odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results Higher exposure to traffic emissions at the time of menarche was associated with increased risk of premenopausal breast cancer (OR 2.05, 95% CI 0.92-4.54, p for trend 0.03); and at the time of a woman's first birth for postmenopausal breast cancer (OR 2.57, 95% CI 1.16-5.69, p for trend 0.19). Statistically significant associations were limited to lifetime non-smokers; there was a significant interaction between exposure at time of menarche and smoking for premenopausal women. Conclusion Our findings add to accumulating evidence that early life exposures impact breast cancer risk and provide indication of potential importance of traffic emissions in risk of breast cancer.

Using data from the 1987 National Survey of Families and Households, this study examines the distribution and determinants of the geographic distance between elderly parents and their adult children. The majority of elderly Americans have at least one adult child living within 10 miles of their residence; for those with two or more adult children, the second-closest child is usually within 30 miles. Compared with the urban elderly, rural elders live farther from their second closest-children. Daughters live no closer than sons to their parents. The analysis shows that education and number of children are the most important factors in predicting parent-child proximity. Other factors, such as age, health, and the family size of the closest adult child, are also important.

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