Gammon and Thompson (1) recently reported in the Journal the results of an analysis of data from the Center for Disease Control's Cancer and Steroid Hormones Study to examine the association between a history of physician-diagnosed polycystic ovaries and the risk of breast cancer. Despite the small number of exposed cases (n =23) and controls (nm 44), their data strongly support the conclusion that a history of polycystic ovaries protects against premenopausal and carly postmenopausal breast cancer. These results are in apparent conflict with those reported in a previous cohort study by Coulam et al. (2), who found a threefold increase in postmenopausal breast cancer in women with polycystic ovaries. Such discrepancy may reflect real, albeit unexplained differences between premenopausal and postmenopausal women in the influence of endogenous hormones on breast cancer.
polycystic ovaries breast cancer risk association, PCOS breast cancer premenopausal postmenopausal risk, polycystic ovarian disease cancer epidemiology, endogenous hormones breast cancer polycystic ovaries, Cancer and Steroid Hormones Study PCOS breast cancer, Coulam polycystic ovaries postmenopausal breast cancer cohort, polycystic ovaries protective effect premenopausal breast cancer, PCOS long term health outcomes cancer risk, hormonal milieu breast cancer polycystic ovarian syndrome, Gammon Thompson polycystic ovaries breast cancer case control
PMID 1415155 1415155 DOI 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a116506 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a116506
Cite this article
Toniolo, P., & Whittemore, A. S. (1992). Re: "Polycystic ovaries and the risk of breast cancer". *American journal of epidemiology*, *136*(3), 372-373. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a116506
Toniolo P, Whittemore AS. Re: "Polycystic ovaries and the risk of breast cancer". Am J Epidemiol. 1992;136(3):372-373. doi:10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a116506
Toniolo, P., and A. S. Whittemore. "Re: "Polycystic ovaries and the risk of breast cancer"." *American journal of epidemiology*, vol. 136, no. 3, 1992, pp. 372-373.
Keywords
Breast Neoplasms/epidemiology, Confounding Factors, Epidemiologic, Female, Humans, Polycystic Ovary Syndrome/complications/therapy
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