ArticleBMC cancer2014
A pilot study of FDG PET/CT detects a link between brown adipose tissue and breast cancer.
Article in BMC cancer, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 28 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
28 citing papers in PubMed, 53 citations in OpenAlex.
- Brown Adipose Tissue in Breast Cancer Evaluated by [Molecular imaging and biology · 2020Trial
- Association between brown adipose tissue activity and clinical outcomes in melanoma: a retrospective PET/CT analysis.Immuno-oncology technology · 2026Article
- Mechanistic Links Between Obesity and Breast Cancer Progression: Cellular Crosstalk, Metabolic Reprogramming and Microenvironmental Drivers.Cell biochemistry and function · 2026Review
- Increased 99m Tc-MAA Uptake in Supraclavicular Brown Adipose Tissue in a Pediatric Patient With Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia.Clinical nuclear medicine · 2026Article
- Brown Adipocyte Promotes HR+ Breast Cancer Invasiveness Through IRX3-Mediated Mitochondrial Dysfunction.Metabolites · 2026Article
- Cancer cachexia induces senescent reprogramming of brown adipose tissue and pro-cachectic S100A9 secretion by adipocytes.Cell death & disease · 2026Article
- Brown adipose tissue activity on PET/CT and the course of Hodgkin lymphoma.Journal of cancer research and clinical oncology · 2025Article
- Review
- The role of brown adipose tissue in mediating healthful longevity.The journal of cardiovascular aging · 2024Article
- Brown fat activation demonstrated on FDG PET/CT predicts survival outcome.Journal of cancer research and clinical oncology · 2023Article
- Crosstalk between Depression and Breast Cancer via Hepatic Epoxide Metabolism: A Central Comorbidity Mechanism.Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- The evolving view of thermogenic fat and its implications in cancer and metabolic diseases.Signal transduction and targeted therapy · 2022Review
- Metabolic Reprogramming in Adipose Tissue During Cancer Cachexia.Frontiers in oncology · 2022Review
- Brown adipose tissue is associated with cardiometabolic health.Nature medicine · 2021Article
- Pheochromocytoma and Paraganglioma Patients With Poor Survival Often Show Brown Adipose Tissue Activation.The Journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism · 2020Article
- Brown adipose tissue and cancer progression.Skeletal radiology · 2020Article
- PET imaging study of brown adipose tissue (BAT) activity in mice devoid of receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE).Journal of biosciences · 2019Article
- The Effects of Adipocytes on the Regulation of Breast Cancer in the Tumor Microenvironment: An Update.Cells · 2019Review
- Article
- Preliminary investigation of brown adipose tissue assessed by PET/CT and cancer activity.Skeletal radiology · 2019Article
Corrections and comments
- Commented on by
Authors and funding
10 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundBreast cancer is the second most lethal cancer in women. Understanding biological mechanisms that cause progression of this disease could yield new targets for prevention and treatment. Recent experimental studies suggest that brown adipose tissue (BAT) may play a key role in breast cancer progression. The primary objective for this pilot study was to determine if the prevalence of active BAT in patients with breast cancer is increased compared to cancer patients with other malignancies.
methodsWe retrospectively analyzed data from 96 breast cancer patients who had FDG PET/CT scan for routine staging at the University of Maryland and 96 age- and weight-matched control female patients with other malignancies (predominantly colon cancer) who had undergone FDG PET/CT imaging on the same day. Data on the distribution (bilateral upper neck, supraclavicular and paraspinal regions) and intensity (SUVmax) of active BAT were evaluated by 2 Nuclear Medicine physicians, blinded to the clinical history.
resultsWe found sufficient evidence to conclude that based on our sample data the prevalence of active BAT in breast cancer patients' group is significantly different from that in the control group. The estimated frequency of BAT activity was 3 fold higher in breast cancer patients as compared to controls with other cancers, (16.7% vs. 5.2%, respectively, p = 0.019). When patients were stratified by age in order to determine the possible impact of age related hormonal changes on active BAT among the younger women (≤ 55 years of age), 25.6% breast cancer patients exhibited BAT activity compared to only 2.8% in control women (p = 0.007). In contrast, among the older women (> 55 years of age), the prevalence of active BAT was similar among breast cancer and control women (10.7% vs 6.7%).
conclusionsIn breast cancer patients prevalence of BAT activity on FDGPET/CT is 3-fold greater than in age- and body weight-matched patients with other solid tumor malignancies; this difference is particularly striking among younger women aged < =55. In summary, our retrospective clinical data provide support to pursue prospective clinical and translational studies to further define the role of BAT in breast cancer development and progression.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.