The Effects of Insulin and Insulin-Like Growth Factors on Tumor Vascularization: New Insights of Insulin-Like Growth Factor Family in Cancer

Ovarian cysts during tamoxifen use may affect the prognostic markers of premenopausal breast cancer

OBJECTIVES

Only a few studies have suggested the association between ovarian cysts and serum estrogen levels during tamoxifen use. However, increased estrogen levels with ovarian cysts would affect the prognosis of breast cancer; this association has not yet been studied. We aimed to investigate the association between ovarian cysts and prognostic markers in premenopausal breast cancer patients undergoing tamoxifen treatment.

METHODS

A retrospective review of 65 premenopausal breast cancer patients who underwent tamoxifen treatment was performed. Serum hormone levels were measured either specifically between cycle days 2 and 5 in menstruating patients or at any time in amenorrheic participants.

RESULTS

The study population consisted of premenopausal patients with (n = 23) and without ovarian cysts (n = 42). Serum estradiol (E(2)) levels and tumor markers were not statistically different based on ovarian cyst status. In the subgroup analysis, serum E(2) levels were significantly higher in menstruating women with ovarian cysts, and E(2) levels were positively correlated with serum cancer antigen 15-3 and insulin-like growth factor-1 in these women.

CONCLUSIONS

Ovarian cysts during tamoxifen use may affect the markers associated with the clinical course of premenopausal breast cancer.

Association between endometriosis and polymorphisms in insulin-like growth factor binding protein genes in Korean women

OBJECTIVE

Genetic factors are known to be associated with the development and progression of endometriosis, but the genes related to endometriosis have not been defined. Insulin-like growth factor binding proteins (IGFBPs) are believed to be involved in the proliferation and apoptosis of cells that play an important role in the pathophysiologic mechanism of endometriosis. This study aimed to determine the association between endometriosis and polymorphisms of the IGFBP genes in Korean women.

STUDY DESIGN

In a case-control study, the rs1995051, rs1065780 and c.759A>G single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the IGFBP1 gene and the -672A>G, -202A>C and c.95C>G SNPs in the IGFBP3 gene were analyzed in 128 women with endometriosis and 108 normal control women.

RESULTS

The haplotype genotype composed of a combination of three IGFBP1 gene polymorphisms was not related to endometriosis, while the haplotype genotype of the IGFBP3 gene had a significant association with endometriosis. Women not carrying the AAG (-672A/-202A/c.95G) haplotype allele of three IGFBP3 gene polymorphisms have a 3.19-times higher risk of endometriosis compared with women with AAG homozygotes, and this trend was found in women with advanced endometriosis but not in women with early endometriosis.

CONCLUSIONS

The AAG haplotype allele of the -672A>G, -202A>C and c.95C>G polymorphisms in the IGFBP3 gene may be associated with advanced endometriosis in Korean women.