Active clinical trials for "Breast Neoplasms"

RATIONALE: Collecting and storing samples of blood and studying them in the laboratory may help doctors learn more about changes that may occur in DNA and identify biomarkers related to cancer. PURPOSE: This laboratory study is examining biomarkers in women with a high risk or average risk of breast cancer.

RATIONALE: Studying samples of blood in the laboratory from patients with cancer treated with trastuzumab may help doctors learn more about biomarkers related to heart dysfunction. It may also help doctors predict which patients will develop heart dysfunction. PURPOSE: This clinical trial is studying biomarkers to see how well they predict heart dysfunction in women with breast cancer treated with trastuzumab.

The investigators propose to validate the utility of their novel hybrid imaging technique for accurate diagnosis of breast lesions, and for assessing chemotherapy response of cancer treatment and predicting treatment efficacy. The investigators' unique hybrid technique is implemented by simultaneously deploying near infrared (NIR) optical sensors and a commercial ultrasound (US) transducer mounted on a hand-held probe, and utilizing co-registered lesion structure information provided by ultrasound to improve the optical tomography. As a result, the optical tomography assisted with US has overcome problems associated with intense light scattering and has provided reliable tumor angiogenesis distributions. Initial results with a small group of patients who underwent biopsy have shown that early stage invasive cancers present two-fold greater total hemoglobin concentration on average than fibroadenomas and other benign lesions. Initial results of advanced cancers have shown that the angiogenesis distribution is highly distorted and heterogeneous, and the distorted distributions correlate with histological microvessel density counts and can be used to assess chemotherapy response. The objective of this study is to validate the investigators' initial results that NIR light guided by ultrasound can improve breast cancer diagnosis and monitor chemotherapy response.

RATIONALE: Learning about the reasons for choosing to have, or not to have, breast reconstruction after mastectomy for breast cancer may help doctors understand why black or Latina women may or may not undergo breast reconstruction. PURPOSE: This clinical trial is studying factors affecting decisions about breast reconstruction after mastectomy in black and Latina women.

RATIONALE: Gathering information about how patients respond to stress and measuring stress levels in women with newly diagnosed breast cancer may help doctors provide better methods of treatment and on-going care. PURPOSE: This research study is measuring stress in women with newly diagnosed stage I, stage II, or stage III breast cancer or ductal carcinoma in situ of the breast.

Prospective & Retrospective data collection of breast cancer cases from 2000 to present

RATIONALE: Diagnostic procedures, such as multifunctional magnetic resonance imaging, may help doctors learn the extent of disease and plan the best treatment. PURPOSE: This clinical trial is studying how well multifunctional magnetic resonance imaging works in predicting breast lesions in women undergoing mastectomy for breast cancer.

The purpose of this study was two-fold: (i) to assess whether MBSR favorably influences psychological status, quality of life, stress hormones, and immune status in breast cancer survivors; and (ii) to explore possible mechanisms by which MBSR may favorably influence these outcomes, in particular, through reduction in fear of breast cancer recurrence and associated perceived stress. Both objectives were studied at the critical transition time immediately following completion of surgical, radiation and/or chemotherapy therapy for breast cancer.

RATIONALE: Gathering information from breast cancer survivors about lymphedema; its symptoms and their impact on shoulder, arm, and hand functioning; and quality of life may help doctors learn more about the disease. PURPOSE: This clinical trial is studying the impact of lymphedema on breast cancer survivors.

Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) is a double edged sword: it can alleviate the effects of menopause for a significant proportion of the female population, however for a smaller proportion, it will induce a significant increase in their short-term and lifetime risk to develop breast cancer (BC). Fewer women are prescribed HRT compared to a decade ago due to concerns pertaining to BC by both physicians and patients. By developing a technology that could identify women at risk for the adverse effects of HRT, during the first few months of its use, physicians may offer HRT to a wider proportion of the female population during menopause. More importantly, as it relates to BC prevention, such a technology will identify women at risk and provide a useful decision making tool regarding their care during the menopausal years.