ArticleCommunications biology2022
Deciphering how early life adiposity influences breast cancer risk using Mendelian randomization.
Article in Communications biology, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 22 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
22 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 39 citations in OpenAlex.
- Lifecourse genome-wide association study meta-analysis refines the critical life stages for adiposity's influence on breast cancer risk.Science advances · 2026Pooled it
- Protein mediators of chronic kidney disease in Type 2 diabetes: A mendelian randomization study.PLoS medicine · 2026Article
- The tissue-specific effects of glucose-lowering drug targets on aging mediated through DNA methylation: a multi-omics genetic study.BMC medicine · 2026Article
- Article
- Systematic assessment of obesity-related risk factors in renal cancer etiology: A longitudinal risk and Mendelian randomization analysis.PLoS medicine · 2026Article
- A structural mean modeling Mendelian randomization approach to investigate the lifecourse effect of adiposity: applied and methodological considerations.American journal of epidemiology · 2026Article
- Assessing the causal and independent impact of parity-related reproductive factors on risk of breast cancer subtypes.BMC medicine · 2025Article
- Leveraging genetic data for female breast cancer prevention and therapy: Perspectives from Mendelian randomization.iMetaOmics · 2025Article
- Mendelian randomization studies of gastric cancer reveal potential risk factors, promising biomarkers and therapeutic targets.Discover oncology · 2025Article
- Mendelian randomization analysis of modifiable risk factors for breast cancer.Discover oncology · 2025Review
- The Effect of SGLT2 Inhibition on Brain-related Phenotypes and Aging: A Drug Target Mendelian Randomization Study.The Journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism · 2025Article
- Identification of Potential Causal Genes for Neurodegenerative Diseases by Mitochondria-Related Genome-Wide Mendelian Randomization.Molecular neurobiology · 2025Article
- Association between genetically predicted leisure and social activities and cardiovascular disease and other health outcomes.Nature cardiovascular research · 2025Article
- Skin Microbiota, Circulating Metabolic Biomarker, Epilepsy: A Mendelian Randomization Analysis.Current issues in molecular biology · 2024Article
- Mammographic density mediates the protective effect of early-life body size on breast cancer risk.Nature communications · 2024Article
- Article
- Genetic imputation of kidney transcriptome, proteome and multi-omics illuminates new blood pressure and hypertension targets.Nature communications · 2024Article
- The mediating role of mammographic density in the protective effect of early-life adiposity on breast cancer risk: a multivariable Mendelian randomization study.medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2023Article
- Leveraging family history data to disentangle time-varying effects on disease risk using lifecourse mendelian randomization.European journal of epidemiology · 2023Article
- Age-specific effects of weight-based body size on fracture risk in later life: a lifecourse Mendelian randomisation study.European journal of epidemiology · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Studies suggest that adiposity in childhood may reduce the risk of breast cancer in later life. The biological mechanism underlying this effect is unclear but is likely to be independent of body size in adulthood. Using a Mendelian randomization framework, we investigate 18 hypothesised mediators of the protective effect of childhood adiposity on later-life breast cancer, including hormonal, reproductive, physical, and glycaemic traits. Our results indicate that, while most of the hypothesised mediators are affected by childhood adiposity, only IGF-1 (OR: 1.08 [1.03: 1.15]), testosterone (total/free/bioavailable ~ OR: 1.12 [1.05: 1.20]), age at menopause (OR: 1.05 [1.03: 1.07]), and age at menarche (OR: 0.92 [0.86: 0.99], direct effect) influence breast cancer risk. However, multivariable Mendelian randomization analysis shows that the protective effect of childhood body size remains unaffected when accounting for these traits (ORs: 0.59-0.67). This suggests that none of the investigated potential mediators strongly contribute to the protective effect of childhood adiposity on breast cancer risk individually. It is plausible, however, that several related traits could collectively mediate the effect when analysed together, and this work provides a compelling foundation for investigating other mediating pathways in future studies.
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Registered trials
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