The science behind the relations among cancer, height, growth patterns, and growth hormone axis

Abstract

The association between growth hormone (GH) and carcinogenesis has long been postulated. The rationale for this association is that several components of the GH axis play an important role in the regulation of cell proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis and angiogenesis and have been tested as targets for cancer therapy. Epidemiological and clinical studies have examined the association between height, growth patterns and IGF-I levels with the most common types of malignancies, while genome-wide association studies have revealed several height-associated genes linked to cancer and/or metastasis-driving pathways. In this context, a permissive role of the GH-IGF signaling system in the link between height and cancer risk has also been investigated. In animal and human models, genetic defects associated with GH deficiency or resistance are associated with protection from tumor development, while risk of malignancies in acromegaly or in patients exposed to recombinant GH therapy has long been a matter of concern and scrutiny. In this review, we present a narrative and historical review covering the potential relations among height, growth patterns, GH axis and cancer.

Update on the use of long-acting growth hormone in children

“…It started with hGH extracted from cadaveric pituitary with first results in children with hypopituitarism published in 1958. At that time, hGH was administered intramuscularly two or three times weekly, an approach that was changed after 1983 to daily subcutaneous injections with the same efficacy [1 , [2][3][4][5]. During the late 1970s, the progress of recombinant DNA technology gave rise to the development of recombinant hGH (rhGH), initiating an era of unlimited supply of GH, with the first study showing the results of treatment with rhGH in GH-deficient (GHD) children published in 1986 [6].…”

“…It started with hGH extracted from cadaveric pituitary with first results in children with hypopituitarism published in 1958. At that time, hGH was administered intramuscularly two or three times weekly, an approach that was changed after 1983 to daily subcutaneous injections with the same efficacy [1 ▪ ,2–5].…”