For the scientific community, B-CAST has delivered >50 peer-reviewed publications together with BCAC to date, and several others are in the pipeline. Selected important results of our 5 objectives of B-CAST are listed below:
1. We showed that non-genetic breast cancer risk factors including reproductive history, lifestyle, mammographic breast density act independently of genetic risk factors, which is highly important for the development of breast cancer risk models, and prediction tools. We also showed that genetic and non-genetic factors have differential associations with oestrogen-receptor positive and negative tumours.
2. We showed that non-genetic risk factors that affect survival, e.g. time since pregnancy, body mass index, act similarly among tumour subtypes.
3. We worked on the development of three risk modules (BOADICEA, iCARE, KARMA) and one prognostication model (PREDICT); most important was the validation of the updated BOADICEA model.
4. We implemented these models into online tools for risk prediction and prognostication. The BOADICEA model was implemented in the CanRisk tool (
https://canrisk.org/(odnośnik otworzy się w nowym oknie)). We successful CE marked CanRisk, making it the only CE marked breast cancer risk tool available in the public domain. We translated CanRisk in Spanish, German, French, and Dutch; Italian and Portuguese versions will be made available soon. For breast cancer prognostication, the PREDICT model (now with an extended endocrine therapy option) is also available in the public domain in English, French and Spanish; a Dutch version will be made available soon (
https://breast.predict.nhs.uk/(odnośnik otworzy się w nowym oknie)). Both models are used extensively worldwide.
5. We raised awareness, i.e. promoted the development and integration of personalized breast cancer prevention within national public health programmes. For the public and policy makers, we published two policy and a workshop report and published an explainer and animation on breast cancer risk models and tools targeting a wider scientific and lay audience.
We disseminated our results in open symposia such as a kick-off meeting in September 2015 and the closing symposium ‘Breast Cancer Risk and Prognostication - Germline and Tumour Genetics’ in February 2021. Both events were delivered together with BRIDGES; the online closing symposium was attended by ~200 participants each day consisting of both established and junior researchers from Europe, UK, USA and other countries. We also co-organized the ENVISION Meeting in 2020 together with other Horizon2020 projects working on breast cancer. This led to the position statement ‘Personalised early detection and prevention of breast cancer: ENVISION Network Consensus Statement’ in Nature Reviews Clinical Oncology.
B-CAST was featured with BRIDGES in the Impact Series which is an open access science magazine disseminating valuable scientific research to key stakeholders in science and society. The workshop report was covered by CORDIS and translated in 6 languages CORDIS News and our paper on BOADICEA - the comprehensive risk prediction model, received national and international media coverage.
