Selenium May Guard Against Breast Cancer
 (HealthDay, 6/17/03)

Professor Alan Diamond and Jun Hu of the University of Illinois at Chicago examined tissue samples taken from 79 breast cancer patients and 517 healthy people. The researchers discovered that the cancer patients had a difference in the frequency of certain versions of a gene that uses selenium to encode the protein, glutathione peroxidase. This could indicate that people with some versions of this gene may require more selenium than normal to produce glutathione, a cancer-blocking antioxidant. The scientists speculate that doctors may eventually be able to identify the exact version of the gene a specific individual has and thereby determine how much selenium that person needs in order for their gene to function properly.