| August 2012 · Vol. 24, No. 8
Breast cancer: The latest
 High infant birth weight increases
maternal breast cancer risk
Having an infant in the top quintile of birth weight is independently linked to more than a two-fold risk
of breast cancer
For women who give birth to large birth weight infants, there is an increased risk of breast cancer, even after adjustment for the mother’s birth weight and traditional breast cancer risk factors, according to a study published in PLoS One.
Radek Bukowski, MD, PhD, from the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, and colleagues examined the risk of breast cancer in relation to a first infant’s birth weight, mother’s own birth weight, and breast cancer risk factors in a prospective cohort of 410 women in the Framingham Study. In a separate prospective cohort of 23,824 pregnant women, serum concentrations of estriol (E3), anti-estrogen alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), and pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A (PAPP-A) were measured.
During a median of 14 years of follow-up the researchers identified 31 women who were diagnosed with breast cancer. Compared with other women, those with infants in the top quintile for birth weight had an increased risk of breast cancer (hazard ratio [HR], 2.5; P = 0.012). The association persisted after adjustment for the mother’s own birth weight and traditional risk factors for breast cancer (adjusted HR, 2.5; P = 0.021). Infant birth weight correlated strongly in a positive manner with maternal E3/AFP ratio and PAPP-A concentration during pregnancy, even after adjustment for breast cancer risk factors.
“Giving birth to an infant with high birth weight was associated with increased breast cancer risk in later life, independently of mother’s own birth weight and breast cancer risk factors and was also associated with a hormonal environment during pregnancy favoring future breast cancer development and progression,” the authors write.
For the abstract of “Birth weight, breast cancer and the potential mediating hormonal environment,”
click here.
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Back to top Breast cancer doesn’t affect sexual function in womenSexual function and body image stable over 18 months for women with DCIS
Sexual function does not seem to be significantly disrupted in women with a diagnosis of ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), according to a study published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine.
Sharon L. Bober, PhD, from Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston, and colleagues assessed self-reported measures of psychosexual functioning and body image in 304 sexually active women diagnosed with DCIS within the previous 3 months. Outcomes were assessed at baseline and at 9 and 18 months.
The researchers found that sexual function was very similar in women with DCIS and women in the general population, with no significant disruption noted for women with a diagnosis of DCIS. Over 18 months of follow-up, sexual function and body image were notably stable. There were no differences in sexual satisfaction for patients who had reconstruction compared with patients who did not have reconstruction following mastectomy.
“Although it has been shown that women with DCIS face a number of significant psychosocial challenges, including vulnerability to anxiety, depression, and heightened inaccurate risk perceptions, it is positive news that sexual function may not be significantly negatively affected by this diagnosis,” the authors write. “Moreover, it is noteworthy that these findings held true for women who underwent mastectomy as well as hormonal therapy.”
For the abstract of “Psychosexual functioning and body image following a diagnosis of ductal carcinoma in situ,” click here.
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Back to top Afinitor approved for advanced breast cancerFor use with exemestane in hormone-receptor positive, HER2-negative breast cancer that has progressed or returned despite treatment
Afinitor (everolimus) has recently been approved in combination with the drug exemestane to treat postmenopausal women with advanced hormone-receptor positive, HER2-negative breast cancer, reports the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The newly approved combination is sanctioned for women whose cancer has progressed or returned despite previous use of the drugs letrozole (Femara, Novartis) or anastrozole (Arimidex, AstraZeneca).
Afinitor—already sanctioned for uses that include treating certain forms of advanced renal cell carcinoma—was clinically evaluated for the new use among 724 people with advanced breast cancer. People who took the combination drug had a 4.6-month improvement in the average time to disease progression or death, compared with those who took a placebo.
The most common side effects among those taking Afinitor were mouth ulcers, infection, rash, fatigue, diarrhea, and loss of appetite. Afinitor is marketed by Novartis, based in East Hanover, NJ. For additional information, click here.
For the FDA Press Release “FDA approves Afinitor for advanced breast cancer,” click here.
For more information from the National Cancer Institute about breast cancer, click here.
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