Trace element correlations in the blood of indian women with breast cancer

Abstract

Fourteen minor (Na, K, P, Fe) and trace (Br, Co, Cr, Cs, Hg, Rb, Sb, Se, Sr, Zn) elements have been determined in pre- and postoperative blood samples of 10 breast-cancer-affected. Indian women and compared with controls. The study showed elevation of Cr, Hg, Fe, Rb, Sb, and Zn and lowering of Se, K, P, and Sr contents in the blood of cancer patients. Most elemental contents in pre- and postoperative stages remain unaltered except Br, Co, and Sb. Statistical significance of Fe, Se, Zn, and Hg levels has been tested by box plots. Lowering of Se in blood (-54.4%) is correlated with its enhancement in cancerous breast tissue (94.7%) of various clinical stages. Se/Zn and Se/Fe ratios are lowered in the blood of cancer patients, whereas Na/K ratio is only marginally enhanced. An attempt has been made to correlate Se levels with the dietary intake and breast cancer risk vis-a-vis American and Japanese women.

Comparative distribution of the scalp hair trace metal contents in the benign tumour patients and normal donors

“…Similarly, higher Pb contents in dietary intake were linked with the cancers of stomach, small intestine, large intestine, ovary, kidney, lung, myeloma, all lymphorms and all leukemia (Hayes 1997;Fanning 1988;Selevan et al 1996;Schrauzer et al 1977). Significant correlations have been reported between blood Cr and Zn levels and mortalities from cancers of breast, colon, rectum, ovary, lung, pancreas, leukemia and bladder (Hayes 1997;Schrauzer 2000;Singh and Garg 1998;Davies 1984;Robinson et al 1973). Association of Cr intake with respiratory, lung and nasal cancers has also been reported (Langard and Vigander 1983;Hayes et al 1989;Davies et al 1991).…”

“…Significantly higher Cr and Zn levels and lower levels of Cu were reported in the scalp hair of patients with malignant tumours than in the scalp hair of healthy donors (Kolmogorov et al 2000), evidencing that higher hair Cr and Zn contents indicated increased cancer risk. Moreover, Cr and Zn had been reported to be significantly higher in the blood of breast cancer patients as compared with healthy donors (Singh and Garg 1998), and had been significant experimental evidence that Cr stimulate oxygen radical production which induces DNA damage (Clodfelder et al 2004). Breast cancer mortality was found to be strongly contributed by Cr, followed by Cd and Zn, while for prostate cancer, Cd revealed the strongest contribution followed by Zn and Cr (Hayes 1997;Drasch et al 2005;Schrauzer 2006).…”

“…Human metabolism may be affected by certain metals even at trace levels and thus associated with numerous health effects (Robinson et al 1973;Goyer 1993;Hayes 1997;Lindh et al 2001). A number of biological processes have been linked with the imbalances of trace metals (Boadi et al 1992;Singh and Garg 1998;Semczuk and Semczuk-Sikora 2001). The relationship between the scalp hair trace metal levels and the development of tumour in human body has been reported in recent literature but with inconsistent results, thus prompting further investigations in this field (Piccinini et al 1996;Leung and Huang 1997;Xu and Wang 1999;Ouyang and Li 2000;Kolmogorove et al 2000;Kilic et al 2004).…”

Anticarcinogenic effects of selenium

“…Significantly higher Cr levels have recently been observed in the blood of Indian breast cancer patients as compared with healthy controls [90]. In these patients, blood Zn and Hg concentrations were also elevated, and blood Se and Hg were directly correlated (P B 0.05), indicating an interaction between the two elements.…”

Trace Elements and Heavy Metals in Hair of Stage III Breast Cancer Patients

“…It will be possible for us to develop new therapeutically strategies aimed at target molecules as we obtain more information on multi-stage cancer growth. Given the worldwide prevalence of the disease, defining the molecular determinants to identify individuals that might be at risk has become an emergency requirement [5][6][7]. Since the 1970s, evidences that trace elements are essential for the body to maintain its natural balance have caused this subject to become attractive.…”