Ghana Breast Health Study microbiome data

The gut microbiota may play a role in breast cancer etiology by regulating hormonal, metabolic, and immunologic pathways. We investigated associations of fecal bacteria with breast cancer and non-malignant breast disease in a case-control study conducted in Ghana, a country with rising breast cancer incidence and mortality. To do this, we sequenced the V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene to characterize bacteria in fecal samples collected at the time of breast biopsy (N=379 breast cancer cases, N=102 non-malignant breast disease cases, N=414 population-based controls).