Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

What’s going on with left-sided breast cancer: a curious phenomenon

Thomas Amburn, MD
Conditions
March 3, 2025
Share
Tweet
Share

In clinical research, chart review is nearly as familiar as daily functions like walking or breathing. My days are full of identifying missing variables, finding them in the electronic medical records, then documenting them in my meticulously organized data sheets. However, during these chart reviews, my mind tries to find a way to break out of autopilot by looking for trends in the data. That’s how I recently noticed the frequency of the letter “L.”

In the field of breast cancer, breasts often (not always!) come in pairs, and unsurprisingly, knowing where the cancer is located is an imperative factor for management. For my data sheets, I prefer to keep things simple with an “L” for left and an “R” for right. Not long ago, as I was reaching the 1,000th patient chart review, I noticed that “L” seemed to show up more often. I had assumed that this was something I had made up. But upon summing up left vs. right cases, it was true—left was notably more common!

Naturally, I went straight to PubMed to do a quick literature review and found an article titled “Laterality of Breast Cancer in the United States,” published in 1996 in the journal Cancer Causes and Control. This study evaluated over 250,000 cases of breast cancer to determine differences between left vs. right breast cancer. What was discovered was that for both invasive and in situ (non-invasive, early-stage) breast cancers, there was a statistically significant trend of the left breast being more involved than the right. In fact, out of 234,657 cases of invasive breast cancer, there were 6,105 more cases of left-sided breast cancer than right. Similarly, out of 21,031 cases of in situ breast cancer, there were 593 more cases of left-sided breast cancer than right.

As to why the left breast has a higher frequency of breast cancer than the right, the evidence is still inconclusive. The 1996 study mentions that the left breast does tend to be larger than the right, but it is unclear whether breast size alone would account for the difference in cancer rates based on laterality. Possibly, there is a difference in the biology between the left and right breasts. Dr. Ramsdell is one of the researchers trying to elucidate these differences, as discussed in a 2015 TEDx Talk. The research shows that in MMTV-cNeuTg/Tg mice, mammary glands display left vs. right differences in susceptibility to HER2/Neu, a protein involved in breast cancer growth. This finding suggests that there may be a genetic component at play causing the left vs. right differences we observe in breast cancer.

What do we do with this information? In general, the field of breast oncology does not hinge much of its approach to screening, diagnostics, or therapies on breast cancer laterality. Although there is ongoing research, such as that conducted by Dr. Ramsdell, to identify the mechanism underlying breast cancer laterality, the exact cause is still largely unknown, limiting the clinical utility of this phenomenon in practice. Additionally, although the difference between left and right breast cancer frequency is statistically significant in the 1996 study, the frequencies are not so dramatic that they would alter day-to-day clinical practice in breast oncology. It is also important to understand that these findings in no way suggest giving preferential medical attention to one side; appropriate and attentive health management should take place in equal measures regardless of laterality.

So, it seems that for now, differences in breast cancer based on laterality remain an interesting observation that deserves further investigation, yet with unclear applicability to health care. However, we ought to remain curious about the biological underpinnings revealed through laterality asymmetry. What other tissues and organ systems are impacted by laterality?

Thomas Amburn is a general surgery resident.

Prev

The future of psychiatry: How AI and genetics are reshaping mental health care

March 3, 2025 Kevin 0
…
Next

Why physicians must uphold their oath in challenging times [PODCAST]

March 3, 2025 Kevin 0
…

Tagged as: Oncology/Hematology

Post navigation

< Previous Post
The future of psychiatry: How AI and genetics are reshaping mental health care
Next Post >
Why physicians must uphold their oath in challenging times [PODCAST]

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

  • Pandemic aftermath: Navigating a new normal in health, education, and social dynamics

    Susan Levenstein, MD
  • Why new cancer treatments cannot save us

    Yongjia Wang
  • Texas’ Medicaid expansion: a lifesaving solution ignored

    David M. Auerbach, MD, MBA, Alex Gajewski, MD, and and Fabrizia Faustinella MD, PhD
  • “System-ness”: the key to successful health care transformation

    Robert Pearl, MD
  • Timely treatment decisions: the promise of surrogate markers

    Layla Parast, PhD
  • Cancer of the future: diagnosis, treatment, and impact on the health care system and patients

    Eugene Chan, MD

More in Conditions

  • How deep transcranial magnetic stimulation is transforming mental health care

    Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD
  • Nurses aren’t eating their young — we’re starving the profession

    Adam J. Wickett, BSN, RN
  • What if medicine had an exit interview?

    Lynn McComas, DNP, ANP-C
  • Finding healing in narrative medicine: When words replace silence

    Michele Luckenbaugh
  • Why coaching is not a substitute for psychotherapy

    Maire Daugharty, MD
  • Why doctors stay silent about preventable harm

    Jenny Shields, PhD
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Why removing fluoride from water is a public health disaster

      Steven J. Katz, DDS | Conditions
    • When did we start treating our lives like trauma?

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • First impressions happen online—not in your exam room

      Sara Meyer | Social media
    • How to speak the language of leadership to improve doctor wellness [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Dedicated hypermobility clinics can transform patient care

      Katharina Schwan, MPH | Conditions
    • Why ADHD in adults is often missed—and why it matters [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

      Carlin Lockwood | Policy
    • Why recovery after illness demands dignity, not suspicion

      Trisza Leann Ray, DO | Physician
    • Why does rifaximin cost 95 percent more in the U.S. than in Asia?

      Jai Kumar, MD, Brian Nohomovich, DO, PhD and Leonid Shamban, DO | Meds
    • Why medical students are trading empathy for publications

      Vijay Rajput, MD | Education
  • Recent Posts

    • How to speak the language of leadership to improve doctor wellness [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Ethical dilemmas in using unclaimed bodies for medical research

      M. Bennet Broner, PhD | Physician
    • The Nova Oath: a physician’s pledge to courageous and ethical care

      Kenneth Ro, MD | Physician
    • AI is not a threat to radiologists. It’s a distraction from what truly matters in medicine.

      Fardad Behzadi, MD | Tech
    • How deep transcranial magnetic stimulation is transforming mental health care

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • True stories of doctors reclaiming their humanity in a system that challenges it

      Alae Kawam, DO & Kim Downey, PT & Nicole Solomos, DO | Physician

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

Leave a Comment

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Why removing fluoride from water is a public health disaster

      Steven J. Katz, DDS | Conditions
    • When did we start treating our lives like trauma?

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • First impressions happen online—not in your exam room

      Sara Meyer | Social media
    • How to speak the language of leadership to improve doctor wellness [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Dedicated hypermobility clinics can transform patient care

      Katharina Schwan, MPH | Conditions
    • Why ADHD in adults is often missed—and why it matters [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

      Carlin Lockwood | Policy
    • Why recovery after illness demands dignity, not suspicion

      Trisza Leann Ray, DO | Physician
    • Why does rifaximin cost 95 percent more in the U.S. than in Asia?

      Jai Kumar, MD, Brian Nohomovich, DO, PhD and Leonid Shamban, DO | Meds
    • Why medical students are trading empathy for publications

      Vijay Rajput, MD | Education
  • Recent Posts

    • How to speak the language of leadership to improve doctor wellness [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Ethical dilemmas in using unclaimed bodies for medical research

      M. Bennet Broner, PhD | Physician
    • The Nova Oath: a physician’s pledge to courageous and ethical care

      Kenneth Ro, MD | Physician
    • AI is not a threat to radiologists. It’s a distraction from what truly matters in medicine.

      Fardad Behzadi, MD | Tech
    • How deep transcranial magnetic stimulation is transforming mental health care

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • True stories of doctors reclaiming their humanity in a system that challenges it

      Alae Kawam, DO & Kim Downey, PT & Nicole Solomos, DO | Physician

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Leave a Comment

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...