ReviewEndocrine reviews2020
Progesterone and Breast Cancer.
Review in Endocrine reviews, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 120 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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
120 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 265 citations in OpenAlex.
- Maternal hormonal contraception use and childhood cancer risk: a systematic review and meta-analysis.European journal of epidemiology · 2026Pooled it
- Association between hysterectomy, oophorectomy, and risk of breast cancer: a meta-analysis.Archives of gynecology and obstetrics · 2025Pooled it
- Optimal extension time after initial endocrine therapy for postmenopausal hormone receptor-positive early-stage breast cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC women's health · 2025Pooled it
- Bilateral breast nodules as an unusual manifestation of 17α-hydroxylase/17,20-lyase deficiency.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2025Pooled it
- The association between endometriosis and risk of endometrial cancer and breast cancer: a meta-analysis.BMC women's health · 2022Pooled it
- Transcriptomic Profile of Breast Tissue of Premenopausal Women Following Treatment with Progesterone Receptor Modulator: Secondary Outcomes of a Randomized Controlled Trial.International journal of molecular sciences · 2024Trial
- Effectiveness of Zhenqi Buxue Oral Liquid Combined with Progesterone for Treatment of Oligomenorrhea and Hypomenorrhea with Qi-Blood and Kidney (Shen) Essence Deficiency: A Randomized Controlled Trial.Chinese journal of integrative medicine · 2023Trial
- Effects of Estradiol/Micronized Progesterone vs. Conjugated Equine Estrogens/Medroxyprogesterone Acetate on Breast Cancer Gene Expression in Healthy Postmenopausal Women.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Trial
- Local Transdermal Delivery of Telapristone Acetate Through Breast Skin, Compared With Oral Treatment: A Randomized Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Phase II Trial.Clinical pharmacology and therapeutics · 2021Trial
- Novel C3/C28-bis-1,2,4-Triazolyl-sulfanylacetate-betulin Derivatives: Synthesis and Evaluation of Anticancer Potential.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Nucleic sexual hormone receptor signaling pathways in breast cancer: function regulation, crosstalk, and therapeutic implications.NPJ precision oncology · 2026Review
- Nutrition Across the Life Course and Risk of Young-Onset Breast Cancer: Mechanisms, Evidence, and Prevention Opportunities.Nutrients · 2026Review
- Discordance between IHC/FISH and RNA expression-based assessment of ER/HER2 status, and its prognostic impact assessed by propensity score matching.BMC cancer · 2026Article
- Study of Estrogen Receptor Alpha Gene Polymorphisms (International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Short-term hormonal modulation with mifepristone does not induce oncogenic changes in the endometrium of BRCA1/2 pathogenic variant carriers.Communications medicine · 2026Article
- Dienogest use and the risk of breast and gynecologic cancers: A nationwide population-based study.International journal of gynaecology and obstetrics: the official organ of the International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics · 2026Article
- Safety profile of progesterone: Insights from an FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS)-based pharmacovigilance study.The Journal of international medical research · 2026Observational
- Mast Cells Accumulate in the Stroma of Breast Adenocarcinoma and Secrete Pro-Inflammatory Cytokines and Tumor-Damaging Mediators: Could IL-37 and IL-38 Play an Anti-Tumor Role?International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Raloxifene and progesterone neuroprotection in a female mouse model of Parkinson's disease.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2026Article
- Risk of breast cancer in assisted reproduction technology: a systematic review and meta-analysis protocol.International journal of surgery protocols · 2025Article
60 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Synthetic progestogens (progestins) have been linked to increased breast cancer risk; however, the role of endogenous progesterone in breast physiology and carcinogenesis is less clearly defined. Mechanistic studies using cell culture, tissue culture, and preclinical models implicate progesterone in breast carcinogenesis. In contrast, limited epidemiologic data generally do not show an association of circulating progesterone levels with risk, and it is unclear whether this reflects methodologic limitations or a truly null relationship. Challenges related to defining the role of progesterone in breast physiology and neoplasia include: complex interactions with estrogens and other hormones (eg, androgens, prolactin, etc.), accounting for timing of blood collections for hormone measurements among cycling women, and limitations of assays to measure progesterone metabolites in blood and progesterone receptor isotypes (PRs) in tissues. Separating the individual effects of estrogens and progesterone is further complicated by the partial dependence of PR transcription on estrogen receptor (ER)α-mediated transcriptional events; indeed, interpreting the integrated interaction of the hormones may be more essential than isolating independent effects. Further, many of the actions of both estrogens and progesterone, particularly in "normal" breast tissues, are driven by paracrine mechanisms in which ligand binding to receptor-positive cells evokes secretion of factors that influence cell division of neighboring receptor-negative cells. Accordingly, blood and tissue levels may differ, and the latter are challenging to measure. Given conflicting data related to the potential role of progesterone in breast cancer etiology and interest in blocking progesterone action to prevent or treat breast cancer, we provide a review of the evidence that links progesterone to breast cancer risk and suggest future directions for filling current gaps in our knowledge.
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.