Inflammation not only increases breast cancer risk, but a new study finds that women with the highest levels of inflammation at the time of diagnosis have the poorest survival. Inflammation levels were determined by measuring CRP (C-Reactive Protein) blood levels.
A prospective cohort study of 2,910 patients with invasive breast cancer to examine whether plasma CRP levels at the time of diagnosis of breast cancer are associated with overall survival, disease-free survival, death from breast cancer, and recurrence of breast cancer. The cumulative incidence of death from breast cancer among breast cancer patients increased with increasing levels of CRP.
In 2,910 women with invasive breast cancer, elevated CRP levels at the time of diagnosis of breast cancer were associated with reduced overall and disease-free survival and with increased risk of death from breast cancer, independently of well-established prognostic tumour characteristics and lifestyle factors.
