The origin of breast cancer is most commonly in which cell layer?

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Breast cancers most commonly arise from the epithelial cells that line the ducts and lobules of the breast. These ductal and lobular epithelial cells are the source of the majority of breast carcinomas, which is why this layer is emphasized in pathology. The myoepithelial cells surround that epithelial layer but are not typically the origin of cancer. The basement membrane is a structural barrier rather than a cell layer, and invasion involves breaking through it, not starting there. Stromal tissue, while important for the breast’s support, is where rarer stromal cancers occur, not the usual origin of breast carcinomas.