Link between BLV and breast cancer

[bobm]

Study published by UC_ Berkley - 9 / 15 / '15 ... established a link between infection with Bovine Leukemia Virus (BLV) and human breast cancer, Published in PLOS ONE. They found that 59% of breast cancer samples had evidence of exposure to BLV as determined by the presence of viral DNA. By contrast 29% of tissue samples from women who never had breast cancer showed exposure to BLV. More studies are needed to confirm that the infection with the virus happend before, not after breast cancer developed, and if so, how. BLV infects dairy and beef cattle blood cells and mammary tissue. This research shows higher levels of the presence of BLV in breast cancer tissue. When the data was analyzed statistically, the odds of having breast cancer if BLV was present was 3.1 times greater than if BLV is absent. This study does not identify how the virus infected the breast tissue samples. The virus could have come through the consumption of unpasturized milk or undercooked meat, or it could have been transmitted by other humans.

 

[so lucky]

Wow, I hadn't even heard of BLV. I'm gonna have to look this up.

 

[thistlebloom]

So... it appears to be not too conclusive thus far.