Male infertility may be linked to breast cancer risk

Less common than its female counterpart, This breast cancer Its etiology in trans men and women is still unknown, mainly due to the few studies on the disease to date.

Now, research led by scientists at the Cancer Research Institute in London, England, suggests: risk of developing invasive breast cancer in men may be linked to infertility self-declaration and number of children.

Published Tuesday in the scientific journal (17) Breast Cancer Researchwork done using interviews with 1,998 menUnder 80 years old diagnosed with breast cancer between 2005 and 2017 in England and Wales. Of this population, 112 (5.6%) also assumed they were infertile, and 383 (19.2%) had no children.

To test their hypotheses, the researchers compared the sample with 1,597 cancer-free menThose who were not consanguineous and were considered the control group. Of these, only 80 (5.0%) reported infertility.

What does infertility have to do with male breast cancer?

The risk of invasive breast cancer tumors, that is, cancer cells that have spread beyond the site of their origin, was associated with male infertility, based on 47 (2.6%) people in the group with breast cancer versus 22. -control (1.4%). 383 boys in the control group, 174 of whom were diagnosed with breast cancer, said they did not have children.

During the study, a possible risk of breast cancer associated with infertility or absence of offspring was ruled out in 160 people with breast tumors. in place (cancer cells that do not metastasize) as it is considered insignificant compared to 1,597 in the control group. Doctors also excluded alcohol consumption, smoking, family history of cancer, and liver disease in the evaluation.

Research leader Michael Jones, Division of Genetics and Epidemiology at the Cancer Research Institute, said: “Our data is Association between male infertility and invasive breast cancer in men”. However, the scientist warns that more research and examination is needed to assess implicit factors, such as hormonal imbalances.

ARTICLE – Breast Cancer Research – DOI: 10.1186/s13058-022-01517-z.