Environment and Breast Cancer: Science Review
Cancer studies: Experimental details
Kuper CF, Reuzel PG, Feron VJ, Verschuuren H. Chronic inhalation toxicity and carcinogenicity study of propylene oxide in Wistar rats. Food Chem Toxicol 1988;26(2):159-67.
Notes
Increased benign mammary tumors significantly, malignant tumors nonsignificantly in female rats. 0, 30, 100, 300 ppm for 6 hr/day, 5 d/wk for 28 months.females: 32/69, 30/71, 39/69, 47/70 fibroadenoma; females: 3/69, 6/71, 5/69, 8/70 adenocarcinoma.
Increased benign mammary tumors significantly, malignant tumors nonsignificantly in female rats. 0, 30, 100, 300 ppm for 6 hr/day, 5 d/wk for 28 months.females: 32/69, 30/71, 39/69, 47/70 fibroadenoma; females: 3/69, 6/71, 5/69, 8/70 adenocarcinoma.
Route
Route of chemical administration: dermal, inhalation, gavage (delivery directly into the
stomach), in feed, subcutaneous injection (under the skin), or intraperitoneal injection (into the
cavity that contains the abdominal organs).
inhalation
Doses
Dosage, frequency, and duration of treatment; the sizes of the groups of animals
involved and what age the animals were at the beginning of the study.
0, 30, 100, 300 ppm for 6 hr/day, 5 d/wk for 28 months. 100 animals of each sex were in each dose group. A total of 30 from each were taken for interim kills.
Time after cessation of dosing
How long the animals were observed after the chemical was no
longer being administered and before death of the animals.
none
Mammary tumors, benign
Development of benign mammary tumors, reported as a series of
fractions. The numerators represent the number of animals that developed benign mammary
tumors and the denominators represent the total number of animals receiving the particular
dose of chemical. Where available, the denominator will reflect the number of animals alive
when the first tumor developed. Otherwise, it will reflect the number of animals examined. The
order of the fractions reflects the level of chemical treatment, from no dose (controls) on the left
to the highest dose on the right. Where available, the histological type of the tumors will be
indicated, i.e. adenoma or fibroadenoma.
Additional information, in development, includes statistical significance and trend information.
We plan to indicate whether a particular treatment group’s ratio of mammary tumors related to
the control is statistically significantly elevated, as determined by the author. This is indicated
with an asterisk (*). We will also include information indicating whether there was an
increasing, statistically significant dose response trend reported by CPDB. Results that are
statistically significant at p < 0.05 are labeled "T+" and statistical significance between 0.05 and
1.0 is labeled "T~". Where there is no dose-related effect or the trend is identified as decreasing
with dose, results are labeled here as "Tna."
females: 32/69, 30/71, 39/69, 47/70 fibroadenoma
Mammary tumors, malignant
Development of malignant mammary gland tumors follows the
same format as for benign, as described above.
females: 3/69, 6/71, 5/69, 8/70 adenocarcinoma
Comments
This field contains information on the survival rates of the animals and the body
weight trends in order to evaluate whether these factors were likely to have affected the
generation of mammary gland tumors. Mammary gland tumors tend to develop later in an
animal’s life, so studies with lowered survival could mean that animals died before mammary
gland tumors could develop. Decreased weight (perhaps due to toxicity of the chemical) can
decrease the development of tumors. This field may also contain other comments about the
design or outcome of the study.
Mortality was increased in the high dose group and in females of the 100 ppm level. Weight was decreased in male rats of the highest dose group.
Other tumors
A list of other tumors that developed in the study that were treatment related.
lymphoma, respiratory system
Endocrine related toxicities
This field reports endocrine related toxicities that appeared in the
study such as testicular atrophy.
uterine endometrial polyps
CPDB TD50 (mg/kg-d)
Data excerpted from the CPDB database that is defined as the "dose-rate in
mg/kg body wt/day which, if administered chronically for the standard lifespan of the species,
will halve the probability of remaining tumorless throughout that period". The CPDB
calculated values for all tumor endpoints listed as well as for total tumors. The range of
mammary gland tumors TD50s is provided, as well as an overall range.
Mammary: 92.6-813, overall: 79.3-2460