Breast Biology and Cancer Unit

Understanding breast biology to prevent diseases including breast cancer and lactation mastitis

The breast is a unique organ, because it goes through most of its development a long time after birth. For example, puberty is an important phase in breast development, as is pregnancy. This development is key in enabling the breast to perform its critical function in producing milk to nurture a new baby, and it also affects the risk of breast cancer for a woman's entire life. We know that the breast is the most susceptible tissue in a woman's body for developing cancer, so it's very important to understand how it grows and functions.

Our research focuses on how the breast functions, how disease states - such as breast cancer and lactation mastitis - can develop in the breast and how this information can be used to improve women's breast health for the life course.

Learn more about breast density

Pre-clinical and clinical research on breast density as a breast cancer risk factor

Understanding the biological factors in breastmilk using mass spectrometry

Investigating inflammatory factors in the breast that affect breast cancer risk and progression

Nutritional factors that affect breast development and breast cancer risk

Applying artificial intelligence techniques to improve breast health

Mathematical modelling of biological behaviour of breast tissue

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Understanding the causes of high breast density

Breast density (also known as mammographic density) is the percentage of white and bright regions on a mammogram. Breast density is not related to how breasts look or feel and can only be assessed by mammogram. High breast density is both an independent risk factor for breast cancer and masks cancers on a mammogram. Combined, these two distinct phenomena lead to increased incidence, delayed diagnosis, and more aggressive tumours. Our research demonstrated a causal role for immune system signalling in breast density and the associated cancer risk, opening the door for new approaches to reduce breast cancer risk through use of anti-inflammatory drugs in women with dense breasts. Find out more about this discovery in Professor Ingman’s ABC Health Report podcast with Dr Norman Swan.

Development of biomechanical models of breast density to improve early detection

Using mathematical modelling and artificial intelligence, we have developed new computational approaches to detecting early breast cancers. Still in the pre-clinical phase, we have shown that these advanced mathematical models have a high degree of accuracy in detecting biomechanical changes in breast tissue associated with early lesions such as ductal carcinoma in situ and invasive breast cancer.

Advancing breast density notification policy

High breast density is both an independent risk factor for breast cancer and masks cancers on a mammogram. For a long time, women in Australia were not being told about their breast density when they had a mammogram. Our research helped to advance policies in screening practices by delivering more information to the community so they could understand the issues involved. We studied why women wanted to be told about their breast density as well as the barriers at play. Hear more about how our work advanced policy in Professor Ingman’s interview with Adelaia.

Improving breast cancer treatment decision-making

Gene expression profiling of breast cancer is a technology increasingly being adopted in the clinic as a precision medicine approach to tailor treatment to individual patients. However, an underappreciated factor in breast cancer diagnosis in young women is that oestrogen and progesterone fluctuate dramatically during the menstrual cycle, and these hormones are likely to affect gene expression. We have shown that the menstrual cycle can affect precision medicine which could in turn affect treatment decision-making. This research has led to the TRIAGE project (Treatment Response Independent of AGE), a collaboration with industry partners that aims to ensure patients of all ages can access the best advice about how to treat their individual breast cancer.

Professor Wendy Ingman

Unit Lead

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Breastmilk is a complex biological fluid that contains over a thousand bioactive proteins, lipids, cells, carbohydrates, hormones and immune factors. The concentrations of these bioactive components can change dramatically over a single feed and over time to meet the growing infant’s needs. There are other factors that affect the composition of breastmilk such as the health of the mother and child, maternal stress, and diet. The bioactive components of breastmilk are unique for each woman and can be considered a ’fingerprint’ that may be indicative of healthy lactation or the risk of disease states such as mastitis or breast cancer. This research is studying these different factors and how they can affect breast function and risk of disease such as breast cancer.

Elastography is a non-invasive medical imaging technique that uses low frequency vibrations caused by ultrasound waves to measure tissue stiffness. The technique can detect breast cancer, however, is not sufficiently accurate to be used routinely in breast cancer screening. Our research suggests that the mechanical properties of cells are substantially different to the properties of bulk tissue, and this affects how they vibrate and how they can be detected on an elastogram. This research is investigating whether we can improve elastography to increase breast cancer detection.

Triple-negative breast cancer is an aggressive breast cancer subtype, defined by the lack of expression of receptors that enable targeted therapy. This cancer subtype often develops resistance to cell death signals by changing production of certain proteins in order to survive. Our research is exploring a new biomarker that detects cells that can continue to survive even when under conditions that would cause healthy cells to die. This could be used to identify breast cancers that are more aggressive and help tailor better treatments.

Lactation mastitis is an inflammatory breast disease affecting 1 of 5 Australian breastfeeding women. It causes pain, fever and low milk supply. The challenges posed by this disease lead many women to use supplementary formula, or cease breastfeeding altogether leaving their infants at increased risk of respiratory and gastrointestinal diseases as babies, and non-communicable diseases including heart disease, obesity, diabetes, cancer, allergies, asthma, mental illness and chronic lung, liver and renal diseases as both children and adults. Our research has suggested that macrophages play a role in development of this disease. The ROBIN study (Risk Of Breast INflammation) is now exploring new concepts of how immune cells function in the breast, and how these cells affect breast disease development. Learn more about lactation mastitis in Professor Ingman’s podcast for the Australian Breastfeeding Association.

Contact the Breast Biology and Cancer Unit

Location
Breast Biology & Cancer Unit
Robinson Research Institute, Adelaide University
The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Discipline Surgery DX465702, Woodville SA 5011