Pregnancies tied to breast cancer odds for high-risk women

- Having more than one pregnancy has long been linked to lower odds of breast cancer, and a new study suggests that may hold true even for some women with genetic mutations that put them at high risk for these malignancies.

"We see a different pattern of risk for BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers," said lead study author Mary Beth Terry of the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health in New York City. Compared to those with no pregnancies, women with BRCA1 mutations who had only one full-term pregnancy were at an increased risk of breast cancer, as were women with BRCA2 mutations who had fewer than four pregnancies.

The study wasn't designed to prove whether or how the number or timing of pregnancies might directly impact cancer risk. Researchers also lacked data on a variety of other factors that can influence cancer risk, and it's possible that women who have multiple pregnancies might be healthier overall than women who have fewer kids.

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