BATAAN PENINSULA STATE UNIVERSITY

Balanga Campus
COLLEGE OF NURSING AND MIDWIFERY

ACTIVITY #1:
RESEARCH PAPER SUMMARY

In Partial Fulfillment
For the Requirement in the Subject of
NCM-106: ONCOLOGY NURSING

Submitted to:
Romeo C. Tuazon Jr., RN, RM, MAN

Submitted by:
Shayne Honoree B. De Leon

June 30, 2014

Reference
Santucci-Pereira, J., George, C., Armiss, D., Russo, I.H., Vanegas, J.E., Sheriff, F., de Cicco,
R.L., Russo, J. (2013). Mimicking pregnancy as a strategy for breast cancer
prevention. Breast Cancer Management, 2(4): 283-294.

Introduction
As one of the most common forms of cancer, breast cancer has been meticulously studied
and researched over the years. A common finding in this research is that a connection has been
found between pregnancy and breast cancer prevention. Evidence has shown that early
pregnancy may provide a protection against breast cancer later in life, compared to women who
have not been pregnant or became pregnant later in life. Previous research has determined a
common thread between pregnancy and breast cancer: hormones, specifically estrogen,
progesterone, and human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG). In this research, the question to be
answered is what is it exactly about pregnancy that may prevent cancer, and is it possible to
simulate such effect in nulliparous women?

Methodology
In this study, eighty 50-day-old virgin female Sprague-Dawley rats were used to test the
effects of the three different hormones to mimic pregnancy. In total, there were four groups
containing 20 rats each: a control group which received only bacteriostatic water
intraperitoneally (hCG vehicle); a group which received 100 IU a day of recombinant hCG
(Ovidrel) intraperitoneally; a group which received a surgically implanted estrogen +
progesterone pellet containing 0.72 mg of 17- estradiol and 200 mg progesterone; and a group

in which the rats were mated and allowed to complete pregnancy. Each group was exposed to
pregnancy or hormone treatment for 21 days and, at the end of exposure, were given a resting
period of 21 days to allow the involution of the mammary gland. Five samples per group were
chosen based on the quality of extracted RNA and Agilent gene-expression microarrays,
representing the whole genome of the rat.

Results
Analysis of the genes expressed in all three preventative modalities shows that
pregnancy, estrogen and progesterone treatment, and hCG treatment all procured cellular
differentiation of the mammary gland, thus, providing protection against breast cancer. Of the
three, it was the hCG preventative strategy that expressed the largest group of genes that
promotes additional cellular differentiation of the mammary gland, reducing the potential of
mammary gland cells to change into carcinogens.

Discussion
With the results of this study, it implies that it is possible to mimic the hormones of
pregnancy in order to prevent breast cancer. Specifically, it is noted that human chorionic
gonadotropin (hCG) preventative measure promoted the most cellular differentiation, thus being
the most effective measure. Upon this discovery, further research could be conducted into how to
implement using hCG in women to prevent breast cancer.

Implications to the Nursing Profession

Nurses are very much aware of the different preventive measures there are against the
formation of cancer. Common methods include promoting a healthy lifestyle by eating a
nutritious diet and encouraging exercise. With the information obtained from this study, it
encourages a new line of thinking in terms of prevention. This is especially helpful for nurses
whose patients are having difficulty becoming pregnant. Nurses can explain an alternative use of
hCG (in which requires further research) can help prevent breast cancer. In this way, protection
against breast cancer is not limited to those who are able to become pregnant.