Endometriosis and breast cancer: A survey of the epidemiological studies

Pontikaki,A.; Sifakis,S.; Spandidos,D. A.

doi:10.3892/ol.2015.3895

Endometriosis and breast cancer: A survey of the epidemiological studies

Authors:
- A. Pontikaki
- S. Sifakis
- D. A. Spandidos
View Affiliations

Affiliations: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University Hospital of Heraklion, 71110 Heraklion, Crete, Greece, Department of Virology, University of Crete, 71110 Heraklion, Crete, Greece
Published online on: November 10, 2015 https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2015.3895
Pages: 23-30
Copyright: © Pontikaki et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.

Metrics: Total Views: 0 (Spandidos Publications: | PMC Statistics: )

Metrics: Total PDF Downloads: 0 (Spandidos Publications: | PMC Statistics: )

Cited By (CrossRef): 0 citations Loading Articles...

Abstract

Endometriosis is a chronic gynecological disease with a wide spectrum of clinical manifestations that affects approximately 10% of women of reproductive age. Recent reviews have demonstrated the connection between endometriosis and breast cancer, which represents the most frequently diagnosed female cancer and the most common cause of cancer-related mortality among women worldwide. The aim of this study was to conduct a survey of available published epidemiological studies indicating the association between endometriosis and breast cancer, and simultaneously to categorize the results based on the strength of the association, with the intention of the critical evaluation of the existing data. We performed a rigorous search of the PubMed/Medline database, using the key words ‘endometriosis’ and ‘breast cancer’ for all studies published in the English language until September 2015. We found 4 retrospective cohort studies, 4 case-control studies and 3 case-cohort studies that demonstrated a notable risk for developing breast cancer among women with endometriosis. By contrast, we also found 5 case-control studies, 1 prospective cohort study, 1 case-cohort study and 1 cross-sectional study that demonstrated a negative association between endometriosis and breast cancer. In conclusion, as regards the clarification of a ‘robust’ or ‘weak’ association between endometriosis and breast cancer, no definite conclusions could be drawn, due to the limited number of studies and the limitations of each of these studies. New well‑designed, prospective cohort or randomized control trials with long-term follow-up are warranted in order to provide evidence-based clinical recommendations for proper counseling, screening and treatment strategies for patients wth endometriosis, and hence to improve public health.

View Figures

View References

1	Crosignani P, Olive D, Bergqvist A and Luciano A: Advances in the management of endometriosis: An update for clinicians. Hum Reprod Update. 12:179–189. 2006. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
2	Ozkan S, Murk W and Arici A: Endometriosis and infertility: Epidemiology and evidence-based treatments. Ann NY Acad Sci. 1127:92–100. 2008. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
3	Bulletti C, Coccia ME, Battistoni S and Borini A: Endometriosis and infertility. J Assist Reprod Genet. 27:441–447. 2010. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
4	Sourial S, Tempest N and Hapangama DK: Theories on the pathogenesis of endometriosis. Int J Reprod Med. 2014:1795152014. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
5	Burney RO and Giudice LC: Pathogenesis and pathophysiology of endometriosis. Fertil Steril. 98:511–519. 2012. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
6	Missmer SA, Hankinson SE, Spiegelman D, Barbieri RL, Marshall LM and Hunter DJ: Incidence of laparoscopically confirmed endometriosis by demographic, anthropometric, and lifestyle factors. Am J Epidemiol. 160:784–796. 2004. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
7	Mehedintu C, Plotogea MN, Ionescu S and Antonovici M: Endometriosis still a challenge. J Med Life. 7:349–357. 2014.PubMed/NCBI
8	Thomas EJ and Campbell IG: Evidence that endometriosis behaves in a malignant manner. Gynecol Obstet Invest. 50(Suppl 1): 2–10. 2000. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
9	Kokcu A: Relationship between endometriosis and cancer from current perspective. Arch Gynecol Obstet. 284:1473–1479. 2011. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
10	Kvaskoff M, Mu F, Terry KL, Harris HR, Poole EM, Farland L and Missmer SA: Endometriosis: A high-risk population for major chronic diseases? Hum Reprod Update. 21:500–516. 2015. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
11	Roy D, Morgan M, Yoo C, Deoraj A, Roy S, Yadav VK, Garoub M, Assaggaf H and Doke M: Integrated bioinformatics, environmental epidemiologic and genomic approaches to identify environmental and molecular links between endometriosis and breast cancer. Int J Mol Sci. 16:25285–25322. 2015. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
12	Fung JN, Holdsworth-Carson SJ, Sapkota Y, Zhao ZZ, Jones L, Girling JE, Paiva P, Healey M, Nyholt DR, Rogers PA and Montgomery GW: Functional evaluation of genetic variants associated with endometriosis near GREB1. Hum Reprod. 30:1263–1275. 2015. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
13	Tao Z, Shi A, Lu C, Song T, Zhang Z and Zhao J: Breast Cancer: Epidemiology and Etiology. Cell Biochem Biophys. Dec 28–2014.(Epub ahead of print).
14	Shah R, Rosso K and Nathanson SD: Pathogenesis, prevention, diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer. World J Clin Oncol. 5:283–298. 2014. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
15	Breast Cancer Screening (PDQ®): Health Professional Version. Authors PDQ Screening and Prevention Editorial Board. SourcePDQ Cancer Information Summaries [Internet] (Bethesda (MD)). National Cancer Institute (US). Jul 14–2002.2015.
16	Goyeneche AA and Telleria CM: Antiprogestins in gynecological diseases. Reproduction. 149:R15–R33. 2015. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
17	Gierisch JM, Coeytaux RR, Urrutia RP, Havrilesky LJ, Moorman PG, Lowery WJ, Dinan M, McBroom AJ, Hasselblad V, Sanders GD, et al: Oral contraceptive use and risk of breast, cervical, colorectal, and endometrial cancers: A systematic review. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 22:1931–1943. 2013. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
18	Prentice RL: Postmenopausal hormone therapy and the risks of coronary heart disease, breast cancer, and stroke. Semin Reprod Med. 32:419–425. 2014. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
19	Moseson M, Koenig KL, Shore RE and Pasternack BS: The influence of medical conditions associated with hormones on the risk of breast cancer. Int J Epidemiol. 22:1000–1009. 1993. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
20	Schairer C, Persson I, Falkeborn M, Naessen T, Troisi R and Brinton LA: Breast cancer risk associated with gynecologic surgery and indications for such surgery. Int J Cancer. 70:150–154. 1997. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
21	Brinton LA, Gridley G, Persson I, Baron J and Bergqvist A: Cancer risk after a hospital discharge diagnosis of endometriosis. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 176:572–579. 1997. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
22	Weiss HA, Brinton LA, Potischman NA, Brogan D, Coates RJ, Gammon MD, Malone KE and Schoenberg JB: Breast cancer risk in young women and history of selected medical conditions. Int J Epidemiol. 28:816–823. 1999. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
23	Venn A, Watson L, Bruinsma F, Giles G and Healy D: Risk of cancer after use of fertility drugs with in-vitro fertilisation. Lancet. 354:1586–1590. 1999. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
24	Borgfeldt C and Andolf E: Cancer risk after hospital discharge diagnosis of benign ovarian cysts and endometriosis. Acta Obstet Gynecol Scand. 83:395–400. 2004. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
25	Melin A, Sparén P, Persson I and Bergqvist A: Endometriosis and the risk of cancer with special emphasis on ovarian cancer. Hum Reprod. 21:1237–1242. 2006. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
26	Melin A, Sparén P and Bergqvist A: The risk of cancer and the role of parity among women with endometriosis. Hum Reprod. 22:3021–3026. 2007. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
27	Bertelsen L, Mellemkjaer L, Frederiksen K, Kjaer SK, Brinton LA, Sakoda LC, van Valkengoed I and Olsen JH: Risk for breast cancer among women with endometriosis. Int J Cancer. 120:1372–1375. 2007. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
28	Nichols HB, Visvanathan K, Newcomb PA, Hampton JM, Egan KM, Titus-Ernstoff L and Trentham-Dietz A: Bilateral oophorectomy in relation to risk of postmenopausal breast cancer: Confounding by nonmalignant indications for surgery? Am J Epidemiol. 173:1111–1120. 2011. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
29	Kok VC, Tsai HJ, Su CF and Lee CK: The risks for ovarian, endometrial, breast, colorectal, and other cancers in women with newly diagnosed endometriosis or adenomyosis: A population-based study. Int J Gynecol Cancer. 25:968–976. 2015. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
30	Baron JA, Weiderpass E, Newcomb PA, Stampfer M, Titus-Ernstoff L, Egan KM and Greenberg ER: Metabolic disorders and breast cancer risk (United States). Cancer Causes Control. 12:875–880. 2001. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
31	Olson JE, Cerhan JR, Janney CA, Anderson KE, Vachon CM and Sellers TA: Postmenopausal cancer risk after self-reported endometriosis diagnosis in the Iowa Women's Health Study. Cancer. 94:1612–1618. 2002. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
32	Gemmill JA, Stratton P, Cleary SD, Ballweg ML and Sinaii N: Cancers, infections, and endocrine diseases in women with endometriosis. Fertil Steril. 94:1627–1631. 2010. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
33	Matta JL, Flores I, Morales LM, Monteiro J, Alvarez-Garriga C and Bayona M: Women with endometriosis have a higher DNA repair capacity and diminished breast cancer risk. Mol Cancer Biol. 1:12013.
34	Morales L, Alvarez-Garriga C, Matta J, Ortiz C, Vergne Y, Vargas W, Acosta H, Ramírez J, Perez-Mayoral J and Bayona M: Factors associated with breast cancer in Puerto Rican women. J Epidemiol Glob Health. 3:205–215. 2013. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
35	Melin A, Lundholm C, Malki N, Swahn ML, Sparen P and Bergqvist A: Endometriosis as a prognostic factor for cancer survival. Int J Cancer. 129:948–955. 2011. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
36	Chalas E, Costantino JP, Wickerham DL, Wolmark N, Lewis GC, Bergman C and Runowicz CD: Benign gynecologic conditions among participants in the Breast Cancer Prevention Trial. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 192:1230–1239. 2005. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
37	Matalliotakis IM, Cakmak H, Mahutte N, Goumenou AG, Koumantakis G and Arici A: The familial risk of breast cancer in women with endometriosis from Yale series. Surg Oncol. 17:289–293. 2008. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
38	Munksgaard PS and Blaakaer J: The association between endometriosis and gynecological cancers and breast cancer: A review of epidemiological data. Gynecol Oncol. 123:157–163. 2011. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
39	Vlahos NF, Economopoulos KP and Fotiou S: Endometriosis, in vitro fertilisation and the risk of gynaecological malignancies, including ovarian and breast cancer. Best Pract Res Clin Obstet Gynaecol. 24:39–50. 2010. View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI
40	Anifantaki FI, Boutas I, Kalampokas T, Kalampokas E, Sofoudis C and Salakos N: Association of endometriosis and breast cancer: Mini review of the literature. Arch Gynecol Obstet. Jul 03–2015.(Epub ahead of print). View Article : Google Scholar : PubMed/NCBI