| RELATED INFO |
| * School of Veterinary Medicine |
| * African Organization for Research and Training in Cancer |
| * Purdue Cancer Center |
September 28, 2007
Purdue researcher looks at racial role in breast cancer tumors
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - A Purdue University researcher is going to the root of cells to find out how breast cancer manifests itself in different ethnic groups.Breast cancer is among the top 10 causes of death in women in the United States. In 2003 - the most recent year numbers are available from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - 41,619 women died from breast cancer. October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
Sulma Mohammed, an associate professor of cancer biology in the Department of Cancer Pathobiology, conducts studies on breast and bladder cancer in her School of Veterinary Medicine laboratory. One of her research projects focuses on identifying models to study breast cancer development and progression in women, especially African-American and African women.
"The majority of African and African-American women develop a particular kind of tumor, called ER-negative, at a young age," Mohammed says. "We're trying to discover ways to improve early detection, which is critical to keep these tumors at a controllable stage."
In addition, Mohammed says that women of African descent generally have tumors that are more aggressive than those in Caucasian women. Much of the research and advances in treating breast cancer, however, have been done on the type of cancer found in Caucasians, she says.
Mohammed will join other international health-care experts on Oct. 24-28 in Cape Town, South Africa, for the Sixth International Cancer Conference: Challenges and Opportunities. She is vice president of the North American branch of the African Organization for Research and Training in Cancer, which is sponsoring the conference.
"We hope to change the picture of cancer in Africa," Mohammed says.
Mohammed is affiliated with Purdue's Cancer Center. She has received a number of awards, including the African American Institute award, African women leaders in science award, and the Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation Award from the American Association for Cancer Research and the Cancer Foundation of America.
Writer: Maggie Morris, (765) 494-2432, maggiemorris@purdue.edu
Source: Sulma Mohammed, (765) 494-9948, mohammes@purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu
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