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Chapter 21 - Hormone Therapy and Cancer

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 June 2020

By
Anne Gompel
Edited by
Nicholas Panay ,
Paula Briggs  and
Gabor T. Kovacs
Nicholas Panay
Affiliation:
Queen Charlotte's & Chelsea Hospital, London
Paula Briggs
Affiliation:
Liverpool Women's NHS Foundation Trust
Gabor T. Kovacs
Affiliation:
Monash University, Victoria
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Summary

Aging is associated with an increase in the development of cancers. Among them some can be influenced by the gonadal hormones. Cancers which are the most hormone dependent are breast and endometrial cancer. Among breast cancer (BC) most of those occurring in postmenopausal women are estradiol (E2) receptor (ER) positive. Endometrial cancer is extremely estrogen dependent. Ovarian cancer (OC) can also mildly be influenced by hormones. Cervical adenocarcinoma (but not squamous cell carcinoma) is possibly a target of estrogen. But in addition to cancer arising from hormone dependent organs, gonadal hormones can also impact some other cancers arising in organs which are not classically hormone dependent.

Type
Chapter
Information
Managing the Menopause , pp. 208 - 222
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

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