Endogenous sex hormone levels and breast cancer risk

Abstract

Sex-steroid hormones are a major determinant of the risk of breast cancer. We evaluated the relationship between obesity and endogenous estrogen levels in 79 healthy, postmenopausal women. Thirty-nine of the women were siblings of patients with postmenopausal-onset breast cancer; the remaining women were age-matched (+/- 10 yr) controls. Our hypothesis was that the siblings of the breast cancer patients would weigh more and that this excess weight would lead to higher serum estrone levels. The choice of unaffected family members of breast cancer patients reduces the concern that results may have been influenced by the cancer rather than antecedent to its development. Our findings demonstrated a statistically significant excess estrone level in the siblings compared to the controls (58.9 vs 47.8 pg/ml, P = 0.005). The siblings weighed 4.3 kg more than the controls. Matched pairs analysis (sibling-control), adjusting for weight, also showed significant differences in serum estrone levels. These differences were observed despite comparability in dietary intake, medication use, and personal medical history. These findings represent the first time that higher estrogen levels have been measured in siblings of postmenopausal breast cancer patients. This observation may represent an important link in our understanding of the relationship between genetic and environmental risk factors of breast cancer. One approach to subsequent genetic studies of breast cancer may be to focus on the possible biological determinants such as sex-steroid hormone level receptors, oncogenes, and gene products and not on the "familial aggregation" of breast cancer.

Sex hormones in women in rural China and in Britain

“…In post-menopausal women E2 is derived largely from adrenally secreted androstenedione (Judd et al, 1982), and most studies have found that plasma concentrations of E2 are positively correlated with body weight (Davidson et al, 1981;Begg et al, 1987). Although significant correlations between weight and E2 were not found in this age group within China or Britain (data not shown), this was probably due to the poor assay precision in this E2 range, and it is likely that at least part of the difference in E2 in this age group is due to the large difference in body weight between countries.…”

Obesity and thyroid cancer

“…Many efforts have been made to understand the possible mechanisms underlying these associations, and it has been strongly suggested that endometrial and postmenopausal breast cancers are linked to obesity by endogenous estrogen levels (Begg et al 1987, Kaaks et al 2002, Renehan et al 2008, Hvidtfeldt et al 2012, Strong et al 2013, whereas cancers of the gallbladder, and esophagus, lymphomas, and myelomas might be influenced by inflammation, which, itself, is very closely related to obesity (Renehan et al 2008, Lodh et al 2012, Kavanagh et al 2013. In patients with pancreatic and colon cancers, the evidence indicates a major role of insulin pathways linking the development of the disease with obesity (Renehan et al 2008, Sun et al 2013, Wolpin et al 2013.…”

Correlations of ER, PR, Her-2 and CK5/6 expression with histological characteristics features and prognosis of breast ductal carcinoma in situ

“…The positive Her-2 staining was localized at cell membrane. According to ASO/CAP scoring system [1], the staining scores were divided into 0, (+), (++) and (+++) according to staining strength. 0 and (+) presented negative; (+++) presented positive.…”

“…Breast cancer is one of the most common malignant tumors in women, and its occurrence and development are closely related to the abnormal expression of sex hormone receptors and several oncogenes [1,2]. Ductal Carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is defined as malignant hyperplasia of mammary ductal epithelial cells which is confined to the intraductal basement membrane without invasion of stroma.…”