Breast cancer in women of an industrial city: medico-demographic, hygienic and genetic aspects

Introduction. In women in the Russian Federation, malignant neoplasms of the breast are the leading oncological pathology, which is a multifactorial disease requiring a comprehensive approach to study.

The aim of the study was to study the features of breast cancer incidence and mortality due to it in women of an industrial city with high level of air pollution.

Materials and methods. The study of breast cancer incidence and mortality among female residents of Novokuznetsk for 2014-2025 was based on an analysis of materials from the territorial Cancer Registry 6FB for the Kemerovo region with statistical processing using the MS Excel package. Gross emissions into the atmosphere and average annual concentrations of carcinogenic pollutants were assessed on the base of official reports for the period 2014–2024. Maximum permissible concentrations of substances were assessed according to the Sanitary Rules and Norms 1.2.3685–21. There were were examined one hundred fifty nine women, 104 of whom had been diagnosed with breast cancer and 55 had no suggestion for cancer of the breast. Using the polymerase chain reaction method, variants of the CYP1A1*2A (rs4646903) gene of the first phase of the xenobiotic biotransformation system were identified in all subjects examined.

Results. In Novokuznetsk, over the past 10 years, there was an increase in the incidence of breast cancer and mortality of it among women. Between 2014 and 2025, the number of women with firstly proven diagnosis increased by 23.4%, while the proportion of early detection of the disease at stage I raised by 16%. The total individual carcinogenic risk corresponded to the permissible (acceptable) level in 2017, 2018, and 2020, and to the alarming level in the remaining years. A positive correlation was found between the incidence of cancer and the total volume of gross emissions into the city’s atmosphere (r_s = 0.45), as well as average annual concentrations of formaldehyde (r_s = 0.19), and benzopyrene (r_s = 0.07). A weak positive correlation was revealed between the number of deaths due to breast cancer and average annual concentrations of benzopyrene. A statistically reliable association was shown between the AA genotype (χ² – 4.04; OR – 2.06) of the phase 1 detoxification gene – CYP1A1*2A (rs4646903) with the risk of breast cancer.

Limitations of the study were determined by the lack of data on average annual carbon (soot) concentrations since 2022 and the need to further increase the sample for genetic studies.

Conclusion. Reducing the incidence and mortality rates of breast cancer requires comprehensive regional scientific approaches, including epidemiological, medico-demographic, hygienic, clinical, and molecular-genetic studies as the basis for integrated information for the elaboration and implementation of early diagnosis and prevention programs for oncological diseases, with a focus on regions with environmental disadvantage.

Compliance with ethical standards. The study was approved by the local Ethics Committee of the Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution “Research Institute for Complex Problems of Hygiene and Occupational Diseases” (Minutes of meeting No. 2, § 2 of March 11, 2025), and was conducted in accordance with the commonly accepted scientific principles of the Helsinki Declaration of the World Medical Association (2013 edition).

Contribution:
Mikhailova N.N. – concept and design of the study, editing;
Kislitsyna V.V. – collection and processing of material, writing the text;
Baran O.I. – collection and processing of material, writing the text;
Gulyaeva O.N. – collection and processing of material, writing the text;
Ulanova E.V. – processing of material;
Chifranova M.V. – collection of material;
Dolgikh S.A. – collection of material.
All authors are responsible for the integrity of all parts of the manuscript and approval of the manuscript final version.

Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Funding. The study had no sponsorship.

Received: April 24, 2026 / Accepted: July 1, 2026 / Published: August 14, 2026

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