Breast cancer after Hodgkin's disease in two sisters

Two sisters had breast cancer at four years and 11 years after diagnosis of Hodgkin's disease. The affected breast tissues had received several hundred rads of scatter radiation during treatment of the lymphoma. Family history revealed breast cancer in a third sister and five other women in the paternal line. Cytogenetic and HLA studies showed no markers of susceptibility to neoplasia. Development of second primary neoplasms of the breast in the two sisters may have resulted from interactions between genetic factors and carcinogenic effects of radiation exposure.