Beyond the Tumour: Breast Cancer Phenotypes

Starting from an acknowledgment of the plurality of epistemic motivations driving phenotype representations, our main contribution is a distinction between six categories of human agents as individuals and groups focused around particular epistemic interests. We analyse the corresponding impact of these groups and individuals on representation types, mapping and reasoning scenarios, using the example of breast cancer research. We in particular demonstrate a heterogeneity of representation types for breast cancer phenotypes and stress that the characterisation of a tumour phenotype often includes parameters that go beyond the representation of a corresponding empirically observed tumour, thus reflecting significant functional features of the phenotypes as well as epistemic interests that drive the modes of representation. Accordingly, the represented features of cancer phenotypes function as epistemic vehicles aiding various classifications, explanations, and predictions.