The association of DNA Repair with breast cancer risk in women. A comparative observational study

Abstract Background Previous studies have found a link between a low DNA repair capacity (DRC) level and increased cancer risk. Our aim was to assess the statistical association of DRC level and breast cancer (BC) using a case–control epidemiological study in a Hispanic community. Methods We conducted a comparative observational study to assess the validity of DRC in detecting BC in 824 women throughout Puerto Rico. Over a 6-year period, we compared 285 women newly diagnosed with BC to 539 without BC. DRC levels were measured in lymphocytes by means of a host-cell reactivation assay. We assessed the sensitivity, specificity, and association using the receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. Multiple logistic regression-adjusted odds ratios were estimated with 95% confidence level to measure the strength of the association of DRC and BC after adjusting for all confounders simultaneously. Results Compared to women without cancer, women with BC showed an average decrease of 60% in their DRC levels (p p Conclusions Our results support the usefulness of DRC level as a measure of BC risk. Additional studies in other populations are needed to further verify its usefulness.