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Why do women contract breast cancer? There can be many reasons for this, including family history, early periods or late menopause.

"These new findings are important in supporting further research into women's cancer development and prevention," said Martin Widschwendter, head of the department of women's cancer at University College London, in a news release.

"We are working hard to understand the risk factors associated with epigenetic changes in normal breast tissue and how these predispose a woman to cancer. The application of these altered epigenetic signatures hold the key developing new interventions that could 'switch off' this epigenetic defect and hold the key to preventing cancer development."

Researchers analyzed DNA in almost 600 breast tissue samples, including those from women with, as well as without breast cancer. The samples were studied through a statistical analysis tool.

More than 30 percent of changes in DNA expression matched cancer samples, showing that some of the reprogramming of cells shifted from normal to cancerous and back, according to UPI.

The results were interesting. They indicated that medicos could examine epigenetic signatures, in order to locate cells leading to cancer. It gave a new look into how breast cancer might develop in some patients and how it could be prevented.

"These new data show how epigenetic alterations if detected early enough, could be used to identify women at higher risk of developing breast cancer," said Andrew Teschendorff, researchers at University College London. "Since epigenetic alterations are reversible, it offers the potential to design preventive strategies. Our work further highlights the importance of inter-disciplinary work, combining clinical, biological and statistical expertise to make these findings possible."