OBJECTIVES:
* To create a database that includes environmental, demographic, phenotypic, clinical, pathologic, genetic, and prognostic factors in large cohorts of women with different stages of breast cancer.
* To create a tissue repository that contains DNA, RNA, or protein from tumor tissue or normal tissue, peripheral blood lymphocytes, and plasma that are linked to frozen and/or paraffin-embedded pathology specimens.
OUTLINE: Patients undergo tumor tissue and normal tissue sample collection at the time of medically indicated surgery or biopsy. Archival tissue may also be collected. Patients and normal volunteers also undergo blood and urine sample collection. A repository of tissue, blood, and urine samples will be established to facilitate current and future research studies to learn about the biologic features of breast cancer development and progression. Research studies may include molecular pathology studies and gene and protein expression studies.
Patients' medical records are reviewed over approximately 5 years to determine if the test results are associated with health status. Patients do not receive the results of individual testing.
