Editor's Choice Main Category: Breast Cancer Also Included In: Obesity / Weight Loss / Fitness Article Date: 26 May 2012 - 0:00 PDT
Current ratings for: 'Breast Cancer Risk Associated With Sex Hormones Reduced By Losing Weight'
Anne McTiernan, M.D., Ph.D., and her team from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center conducted the first randomized, controlled clinical trial to assess what impact weight loss may have on sex hormones in those with an elevated risk of breast cancer, i.e. overweight and obese postmenopausal women.
McTiernan, who is a director of the Hutchinson Center's Prevention Center and a member of its Public Health Sciences Division declared:
However, she warns that these results solely apply to women that are overweight or obese who do not take any hormone-replacement therapy.
Epidemiologists have known for quite some time about the association between obesity and a higher risk of postmenopausal breast cancer, and that the relationship between body fat and estrogen production may be a contributing factor.
For their study, the researchers randomized 439 overweight-to-obese, sedentary women from the Seattle area into four different groups. One group was assigned to exercise only, which consisted mainly of brisk walking, whilst the other group was assigned to only a diet. The third group was assigned to exercise plus diet, with the fourth group receiving no intervention. All women were aged between 50 to 75 years. The primary goal of the study was determined as an average weight loss of 10% of their starting weight. In comparison with the exercise only and the no intervention group, both the diet-only and diet-plus-exercise groups met the primary goal.
The researchers measured the impact of diet- and exercise-related weight loss on blood levels of various types of sex hormones, including:
The team discovered that a beneficial impact could be achieved on hormone levels by losing as little as 5% of one's total body weight. The effect was noted to increase with the amount of weight loss.
McTiernan explained: "The amount of weight lost was key to changes in hormone levels. The biggest effect was through diet plus exercise; exercise by itself didn't produce much of a change in weight or estrogen."
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Breast Cancer Risk Associated With Sex Hormones Reduced By Losing Weight
