A recent study has shown that among women carrying a BRCA 1 and BRCA 2 mutation, the use of fertility treatment does not contribute to a discernable increase in breast cancer risk.
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What is BRCA1 and BRCA2?
BRCA1 or Breast Cancer gene 1 and BRCA2 or Breast
Cancer gene 2 – are genes that produce proteins that help repair damaged DNA in
the human body. Everyone has two copies of these genes; one copy is inherited
from each parent. These genes are sometimes referred to as tumor suppressor
genes because when these have changes, called harmful (pathogenic) variants
(mutations), cancer can develop.
Research involved a total of 1,824 Jewish Israeli women
with confirmed BRCA ½ mutation, of whom 332 or 18.2% had undergone fertility
treatment with clomiphene citrate, gonadotropin, in vitro fertilization, or a
combination of treatments. The remaining 1,492 or 81.8% of women participants had
not been treated for infertility.
There were 687 women who were diagnosed with breast
cancer. Using multivariable cox proportional hazards analysis revealed no link
between fertility treatment and breast cancer risk in the total population and
when classified by each gene.
Corresponding hazard ratios (HRs) for breast cancer
were 0.77 with clomiphene citrate, 0.54 with gonadotropin, 0.65 with in vitro
fertilization, and 1.23 with combined treatments.
In the meantime, paternal origin of the mutation
conferred a risk increase, as did the long-term use of oral contraceptives, in
both BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers.
Women using any oral contraceptives, finally , were at
lower risk of ovarian cancer.
For complete or full details of the clinical study,
click here.
Source: Fertil Steril
2021;doi:10.1016/j.fertnstert.2021.02.030