The 1996 Veylien Henderson Award of the Society of Toxicology of Canada. Current concepts: neutrophils and the activation of carcinogens in the breast and other organs

Many chemical carcinogens target epithelial tissues, but the biological and biochemical bases of carcinogen specificity remain largely unknown. Focusing on the mammary gland, we discuss the concept that neutrophils metabolize carcinogens to reactive species that damage adjacent epithelial cells. This mechanism may help to explain why epithelial cells are sensitive targets for chemical carcinogenesis, despite their limited bioactivation capacity.