Breast cancer not linked to bras

the Oncology Nurse Advisor take:

According to a new study published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers, and Prevention, wearing bras does not increase a woman's risk for developing breast cancer. In the study, researchers identified more than 1,000 postmenopausal women with invasive breast cancer and about 450 women without cancer.

Among other things, women were asked about their lifetime patterns of bra use during face-to-face interviews. Researchers analyzed the data and found that there was no association between bra use and the development of breast cancer.

There has previously been no data indicating that wearing a bra is linked to developing breast cancer, but a book entitled "Dressed to Kill: The Link Between Breast Cancer and Bras," which was published in 1995, started the widespread rumors that there is an association. The book proposed that women of Western cultures had an increased risk of breast cancer compared with indigenous cultures because Western women wear bras. The study was widely criticized for its poor study design.

This new case-control study conducted by the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, Washington, now puts to rest the myths surrounding wearing bras and developing breast cancer.