ABSTRACT
Worldwide, breast cancer is the most prevalent malignancy in women (Parkin et al. 2001). Although major advances have been made in early detection and treatment, as many women today are unfortunately dying from breast cancer as there were nearly a century ago (Parkin et al. 2001). More alarming is the fact that, until just recently, the incidence of breast cancer had steadily increased for more than 60 years (Parkin et al. 2001). While specic genes such as BRCA1 and BRCA2, which predispose women to breast cancer, have been identied, these genes are estimated to be directly responsible for only 10-15% of all breast cancers (Bishop 1999). The cause for the remaining 85-90% of breast cancers in women is related to yet unknown environmental and nutritional factors. Therefore, it is evident that advances in the area of breast cancer prevention would be of great benet in signicantly reducing breast cancer risk and mortality.
