The intraductal approach to the breast: raison d'être

doi:10.1186/bcr1410

Breast Cancer Research

Volume 8
Issue 2

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Review

The intraductal approach to the breast: raison d'être

Bonnie L King¹ and Susan M Love²

¹Department of Biological Sciences, Quinnipiac University, Mt Carmel Ave, Hamden, CT 06518-1908, USA

²Dr Susan Love Breast Cancer Research Foundation, Via de la Paz, Pacific Palisades, CA 90272, USA

author email corresponding author email

Breast Cancer Research 2006, 8:206doi:10.1186/bcr1410


Published:	21 April 2006

Abstract

Opportunities for the detection, prediction, and treatment of breast cancer exist at three biological levels: systemically via the blood, at the whole organ level, and within the individual ductal lobular structures of the breast. This review covers the evaluation of approaches targeted to the ductal lobular units, where breast cancer begins. Studies to date suggest the presence of 5 to 12 independent ductal lobular systems per breast, each harboring complex cellular fluids contributed by local and systemic processes. New techniques for accessing and interrogating these systems offer the potential to gauge the microenvironment of the breast and distill biological risk profiles.