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Breast cancer

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Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women, affecting 1 in 8 Australian women by the time they are 85, and causing over 2,500 deaths. Research at the QIMR is aimed at developing a better understanding of who is at particular risk for this cancer, and how the cancers develop from normal precursor cells.

Our research focuses on:

  • Searching for genes that are linked to breast cancer risk (both cancer-causing genes and cancer-suppressing genes)
  • Studying molecular processes to determine how cancer arises from healthy cells
  • Examining environmental influences that impact on breast cancer susceptibility and survival
  • Identifying proteins on the surface of the cancer cell in the hope of developing treatments using a patient's own immune cells

Our recent research has found:

  • Genetic links between ovarian and breast cancer risk factors.
  • A stretch of DNA that is associated with an increased breast cancer risk in women who carry a mutated BRCA1 gene.
  • A certain type of mutation within a DNA repair protein called a missense mutation, affects the function of the protein without destroying it, and was found to confer the highest risk of breast cancer compared to other types of mutations.

Research groups involved in breast cancer research: