Evaluation of Feasibility for a Case-Control Study of Pituitary-Ovarian Function in Premenopausal Women With Breast Cancer

摘要

Postmenopausal women with elevated serum estrogens are at an increased risk of breast cancer, but an association of serum estrogens with breast cancer in premenopausal women has not been clearly established. This may be partly due to methodological problems related to the dramatic variation in serum concentrations over the menstrual cycle. The purpose of this study was to evaluate variation in responsiveness of ovarian hormones to gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) stimulation in healthy premenopausal women. GnRH stimulation was achieved by subcutaneous injection of a single bolus (1 'g/kg) of leuprolide acetate (Lupron) on days 1 to 5 after start of menses. This dose was chosen to keep serum estradiol levels within the normal range for premenopausal women. Luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) increased following GnRH stimulation. Estradiol also generally increased following stimulation but there was some variation in the magnitude of the response. Further analyses are planned to identify determinants of the estradiol response to GnRH stimulation in premenopausal women.