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A rehabilitation program for women with high risk for breast cancer or known hereditary breast carcinoma is described. The rehabilitation uses complex and interdisciplinary therapeutic interventions to improve symptoms, functional deficits and disease and treatment related psychologic distress. An essential component of the rehabilitation is an educational program with up-to-date information about the possibilities and limitations of genetic testing and recommendations about primary and secondary prevention. Suggestions for risk reduction as primary prevention are discussed. This rehabilitation program should be implemented in an effective follow-up care for women genetically susceptible to breast cancer.

Twenty-four colorectal carcinomas were assayed for estrogen and progestin receptors by sucrose gradient centrifugation. Most biopsies were either completely estrogen receptor negative or displayed low titers of specific estrogen binding. Only three tumors demonstrated moderate estrogen binding activity (10-18 fmol/mg cytosol protein). In four tumors specific progestin binding exceeded 20 fmol/mg protein. Only a minor subset of the binders sedimented at 8S. Twenty-one colorectal tumors examined for the presence of glucocorticoid receptors were found to be receptor positive, without exception. Biopsies from normal colorectal mucosa displayed minute quantities of specific 8S estrogen and progestin binding, but significant titers of specific glucocorticoid binding. Our findings support the hypothesis that estrogens and progestins are unlikely to play a major role in endocrine control of colorectal neoplasms. The role of glucocorticoids in growth control of colorectal neoplasms remains to be defined.