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  Vol. 289 No. 24, June 25, 2003 TABLE OF CONTENTS
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Influence of Estrogen Plus Progestin on Breast Cancer and Mammography in Healthy Postmenopausal Women

The Women's Health Initiative Randomized Trial

Rowan T. Chlebowski, MD, PhD; Susan L. Hendrix, DO; Robert D. Langer, MD, MPH; Marcia L. Stefanick, PhD; Margery Gass, MD; Dorothy Lane, MD, MPH; Rebecca J. Rodabough, MS; Mary Ann Gilligan, MD, MPH; Michele G. Cyr, MD; Cynthia A. Thomson, PhD, RD; Janardan Khandekar, MD; Helen Petrovitch, MD; Anne McTiernan, MD , PhD; for the WHI Investigators

JAMA. 2003;289:3243-3253.

Context  The Women's Health Initiative trial of combined estrogen plus progestin was stopped early when overall health risks, including invasive breast cancer, exceeded benefits. Outstanding issues not previously addressed include characteristics of breast cancers observed among women using hormones and whether diagnosis may be influenced by hormone effects on mammography.

Objective  To determine the relationship among estrogen plus progestin use, breast cancer characteristics, and mammography recommendations.

Design, Setting, and Participants  Following a comprehensive breast cancer risk assessment, 16 608 postmenopausal women aged 50 to 79 years with an intact uterus were randomly assigned to receive combined conjugated equine estrogens (0.625 mg/d) plus medroxyprogesterone acetate (2.5 mg/d) or placebo from 1993 to 1998 at 40 clinical centers. Screening mammography and clinical breast examinations were performed at baseline and yearly thereafter.

Main Outcome Measures  Breast cancer number and characteristics, and frequency of abnormal mammograms by estrogen plus progestin exposure.

Results  In intent-to-treat analyses, estrogen plus progestin increased total (245 vs 185 cases; hazard ratio [HR], 1.24; weighted P<.001) and invasive (199 vs 150 cases; HR, 1.24; weighted P = .003) breast cancers compared with placebo. The invasive breast cancers diagnosed in the estrogen plus progestin group were similar in histology and grade but were larger (mean [SD], 1.7 cm [1.1] vs 1.5 cm [0.9], respectively; P = .04) and were at more advanced stage (regional/metastatic 25.4% vs 16.0%, respectively; P = .04) compared with those diagnosed in the placebo group. After 1 year, the percentage of women with abnormal mammograms was substantially greater in the estrogen plus progestin group (716 [9.4%] of 7656) compared with placebo group (398 [5.4%] of 7310; P<.001), a pattern which continued for the study duration.

Conclusions  Relatively short-term combined estrogen plus progestin use increases incident breast cancers, which are diagnosed at a more advanced stage compared with placebo use, and also substantially increases the percentage of women with abnormal mammograms. These results suggest estrogen plus progestin may stimulate breast cancer growth and hinder breast cancer diagnosis.


Author Affiliations: Harbor-UCLA Research and Education Institute, Torrance, Calif (Dr Chlebowski); Wayne State University, Detroit, Mich (Dr Hendrix); University of California San Diego School of Medicine, La Jolla (Dr Langer); Department of Medicine, Stanford University, Palo Alto, Calif (Dr Stefanick); Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio (Dr Gass); Department of Preventive Medicine, State University of New York, Stony Brook (Dr Lane); Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Wash (Ms Rodabough); Department of Medicine, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee (Dr Gilligan); Department of Medicine, Brown Medical School, Providence, RI (Dr Cyr); University of Arizona, Tucson (Dr Thomson); Department of Medicine, Evanston Northwestern Healthcare, Evanston, Ill (Dr Khandekar); Department of Geriatrics and Medicine, John A. Burns School of Medicine, Honolulu, Hawaii (Dr Petrovitch); and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Wash (Dr McTiernan).



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