Project Grant R21CA293419

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center received a $407,321 Project Grant from the National Cancer Institute (CFDA 93.393 - Cancer Cause and Prevention Research) to conduct research aimed at identifying alternative splicing and isoform expression patterns that may mediate the genetic etiology of breast cancer and mammographic density phenotypes. The project will involve re-aligning existing breast-specific RNA-sequencing datasets using novel isoform annotations derived from long-read sequencing data, and then integrating this with existing breast cancer and mammographic density GWAS data to pinpoint isoform- and splice-site-specific mechanisms underlying genetic associations. The University of Washington is a sub-awardee, contributing expertise in genetic association studies of mammographic density and breast cancer. This innovative proposal seeks to advance the understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the genetic drivers of breast cancer risk and mammographic density.