Radiation Exposure, the ATM Gene, and Contralateral Breast Cancer in the Women's Environmental Cancer and Radiation Epidemiology Study.

Background: Ionizing radiation is a known mutagen and an established breast carcinogen. The ATM gene is a key regulator of cellular responses to the DNA damage induced by ionizing radiation. We investigated whether genetic variants in ATM play a clinically significant role in radiation-induced contralateral breast cancer in women. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]