McFadyen, I. J., Forrest, A. P., Prescott, R. J., Golder, M. P., Groom, G. V., Fahmy, D. R., & Griffiths, K. D. (1976). Circulating hormone concentrations in women with breast cancer. Lancet (London, England), 1(7969), 1100-1102. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(76)90064-7
McFadyen IJ, Forrest AP, Prescott RJ, Golder MP, Groom GV, Fahmy DR, et al. Circulating hormone concentrations in women with breast cancer. Lancet. 1976;1(7969):1100-1102. doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(76)90064-7
McFadyen, Iain J., et al. "Circulating hormone concentrations in women with breast cancer." Lancet (London, England), vol. 1, no. 7969, 1976, pp. 1100-1102.
For EndNote, Zotero or Mendeley:
License
No open license is recorded for this paper. Reuse terms are set by the publisher.
Multiple plasma-hormone concentrations were measured in sequential plasma-samples from six women with breast cancer and were compared to concentrations in six control women matched for age, years since menopause, and parity. All hormone concentrations in all the women studied were within normal limits. However, within the normal range the plasma-testosterone concentrations in each cancer patient were significantly higher than in each matched control.
Serum testosterone, progesterone, luteinizing hormone, prolactin, and sex hormone-binding globulin levels were measured in 55 normal controls, in 31 patients with hyperplastic alterations of breast epithelium, and in 23 patients with breast cancer. All patients and controls were premenopausal, and they were comparable for age, weight, and body surface. In the controls, the mean level of testosterone [0.47 +/- 0.16 (S.D.) ng/ml] was lower and the mean level of progesterone (17.63 +/- 8.11 ng/ml) was higher than in breast cancer patients [testosterone level, 0.62 +/- 0.22 ng/ml (p less than 0.005); progesterone level, 11.4 +/- 8.0 ng/ml (p less than 0.005)] and in patients with breast epithelial hyperplasia [testosterone level, 0.55 +/- 0.2 ng/ml (p less than or equal to 0.05); progesterone level, 13.9 +/- 8.6 ng/ml (p less than 0.05)]. No difference was found in the mean circulating levels of luteinizing hormone, prolactin, or sex hormone-binding globulin between controls and patients. These results confirm previous findings of increased urinary testosterone excretion in women with anovulatory menstrual cycles and epithelial hyperplasia or cancer of the breast and strongly support the hypothesis that androgens play an important role in both induction and development of breast cancer.
Blood and urine specimens from 27 premenopausal breast cancer patients and 62 healthy controls have been compared with respect to concentration of testosterone and progesterone in blood and of testosterone and androstanediol in urine, measured in the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle. There was a strong positive association between the concentration of the two androgens, either in blood or urine, and breast cancer risk. A strong association was also observed with decreasing levels of progesterone. The association was statistically significant (p for trend less than 0.01) for each hormone; the rate ratios were 10.2 for serum testosterone (highest category), 5.6 for serum progesterone (lowest category), 8.4 for urinary testosterone (highest category), and 5.2 for androstanediol (highest category). The rate ratio for women presenting both high serum testosterone and low progesterone was 21.8 (4.1 to 116.1). Considering the exposure to at least one of three androgens at the highest level and low progesterone, the rate ratio was as high as 90.2 (8.2 to 989.7). This study provides evidence for the hypothesis that increased androgenic activity is an important risk indicator for breast cancer, particularly when associated with anovulation, as indicated by low serum progesterone level.
Forty-one women with breast cancer and 119 controls participated in a case-control study of the relation of endogenous sex hormones to breast carcinoma in premenopausal women. During the follicular phase of the menstrual cycle, one overnight urine specimen was collected. During the luteal phase, urine and blood specimens were obtained. 17 beta-Estradiol, sex hormone-binding globulin, progesterone, and prolactin were measured in plasma, whereas estrogen metabolites (estrone, estradiol, and estriol) and pregnanediol were assessed in the urine. Breast cancer was associated with high-plasma estradiol and prolactin and with low progesterone. Similar but weaker associations were observed for urinary estrogens and pregnanediol in the luteal phase.
Urinary testosterone and androstanediol were measured by gas chromatography in four groups of premenopausal 22 healthy women (control group), 21 healthy women with a family history of breast cancer (familiality group), 39 patients with breast lumps which consisted of ductal or lobular hyperplasia (hyperplasia group) and 18 patients with infiltrating breast carcinoma (carcinoma group). On the basis of normal values found in our laboratory, steroid levels were above normal in 4.5% of the controls, 4.7% of the familiality group, 38.5% of the hyperplasia group (P less than 0.01 vs controls) and 61.1% of the carcinoma group (P less than 0.001 vs control group). The mean testosterone level in the carcinoma group (11.3 +/- 6.78 S.D.) and the mean androstanediol level in the hyperplasia group (47.25 +/- 31.0 S.D.) were significantly higher than those of the control group (testosterone 6.25 +/- 3.48 S.D., androstanediol 32.55 +/- 20.0 S.D.). No significant difference was found in mean testosterone or androstanediol levels between the control group and the familiality group (testerone 5.41 +/- 3.6 S.D., androstanediol 29.38 +/- 15.89 S.D.). We conclude that increased excretion of androgenic steroids is a hormonal abnormality common to breast cancer patients and to patients with breast epithelial hyperplasia, but not to subjects with a family history of carcinoma of the breast.
General Gynecology › Breast Health › Breast Cancer Risk
PMID 57508 57508 DOI 10.1016/s0140-6736(76)90064-7 10.1016/s0140-6736(76)90064-7 McFadyen et al. 1976, McFadyen 1976
Cite this article
McFadyen, I. J., Forrest, A. P., Prescott, R. J., Golder, M. P., Groom, G. V., Fahmy, D. R., & Griffiths, K. D. (1976). Circulating hormone concentrations in women with breast cancer. Lancet (London, England), 1(7969), 1100-1102. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(76)90064-7
McFadyen IJ, Forrest AP, Prescott RJ, Golder MP, Groom GV, Fahmy DR, et al. Circulating hormone concentrations in women with breast cancer. Lancet. 1976;1(7969):1100-1102. doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(76)90064-7
McFadyen, Iain J., et al. "Circulating hormone concentrations in women with breast cancer." Lancet (London, England), vol. 1, no. 7969, 1976, pp. 1100-1102.
