Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40609572›Full record

ArticleThe Lancet. Oncology2025

Hormone therapy use and young-onset breast cancer: a pooled analysis of prospective cohorts included in the Premenopausal Breast Cancer Collaborative Group.

Katie M O'Brien, Melissa G House, Mandy Goldberg, Michael E Jones, Clarice R Weinberg, Amy Berrington de Gonzalez, Kimberly A Bertrand, William J Blot, Jessica Clague DeHart, Fergus J Couch and 19 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in The Lancet. Oncology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

29 authors.

Katie M O'BrienEpidemiology Branch, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA. Electronic address: katie.obrien@nih.gov.
Melissa G HouseWestat, Durham, NC, USA.
Mandy GoldbergEpidemiology Branch, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA.
Michael E JonesDivision of Genetics and Epidemiology, Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK.
Clarice R WeinbergBiostatistics and Computational Biology Branch, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA.
Amy Berrington de GonzalezDivision of Genetics and Epidemiology, Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK.
Kimberly A BertrandSlone Epidemiology Center, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.
William J BlotDepartment of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA.
Jessica Clague DeHartSchool of Community and Global Health, Claremont Graduate University, Claremont, CA, USA.
Fergus J CouchDepartment of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA.
Montserrat Garcia-ClosasDivision of Genetics and Epidemiology, Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK.
Graham G GilesCancer Epidemiology Division, Cancer Council Victoria, Melbourne, VIC, Australia; Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne, VIC, Australia; Precision Medicine, School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia.
Victoria A KirshOntario Institute for Cancer Research, Toronto, ON, Canada; Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Cari M KitaharaRadiation Epidemiology Branch, National Cancer Institute, Rockville, MD, USA.
Woon-Puay KohYong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore; Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences, Agency for Science Technology and Research, Singapore.
Hannah Lui ParkDepartment of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, UC Irvine School of Medicine, Irvine, CA, USA; Department of Epidemiology, UC Irvine School of Medicine, Irvine, CA, USA.
Roger L MilneCancer Epidemiology Division, Cancer Council Victoria, Melbourne, VIC, Australia; Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne, VIC, Australia; Precision Medicine, School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia.
Julie R PalmerSlone Epidemiology Center, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.
Alpa V PatelDepartment of Population Science, American Cancer Society, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Thomas E RohanEpidemiology and Population Health, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, NY, USA.
Minouk J SchoemakerDivision of Genetics and Epidemiology, Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK; Real World Solutions, IQVIA, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Anthony J SwerdlowDivision of Genetics and Epidemiology, Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK; Division of Breast Cancer Research, Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK.
Lauren R TerasDepartment of Population Science, American Cancer Society, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Celine VachonDepartment of Quantitative Health Sciences, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA.
Kala VisvanathanDepartment of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA.
Jian-Min YuanUniversity of Pittsburgh Medical Center Hillman Cancer Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
Wei ZhengDepartment of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA.
Hazel B NicholsDepartment of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
Dale P SandlerEpidemiology Branch, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA.

Funding

VIRAL MALIGNANCYP30CA023100 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO · PI Jesse Nodora · 1985 to 2026
$124.9M
Transgenic Mouse FacilityP30CA033572 · NCI · CITY OF HOPE/BECKMAN RESEARCH INSTITUTE · PI XIWEI WU · 1985 to 2026
$86.3M
CALIFORNIA TEACHERS STUDYR01CA077398 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA · PI BERNSTEIN, LESLIE · 1998 to 2014
$29.7M
A Follow-up Study for Causes of Cancer in Black WomenU01CA164974 · NCI · BOSTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CAMPUS · PI Kimberly A. Bertrand, Yvette C Cozier · 2017 to 2026
$24.0M
Oil and Gas as Drivers of Climate Change and Health: Developing unique resources to investigate multi-level and diverse effects of exposure to oil and gas wellsU01CA199277 · NCI · BECKMAN RESEARCH INSTITUTE/CITY OF HOPE · PI LACEY, JAMES V, MARTINEZ, MARIA ELENA · 2015 to 2024
$20.7M
New Biospecimens to Enhance Research in the California Teachers Study CohortUM1CA164917 · NCI · BECKMAN RESEARCH INSTITUTE/CITY OF HOPE · PI LACEY, JAMES V · 2012 to 2015
$10.1M
Prospective studies of cancer etiology and prevention in Shanghai and SingaporeR01CA144034 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH · PI YUAN, JIAN-MIN · 2010 to 2014
$7.0M
Resolving the cancer relevance of predisposition gene mutationsR35CA253187 · NCI · MAYO CLINIC ROCHESTER · PI Fergus Joseph Couch · 2020 to 2026
$5.8M
THE SINGAPORE COHORT STUDY OF DIET AND CANCERR01CA080205 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA · PI YUAN, JIAN-MIN · 1999 to 2009
$5.3M
Cancer epidemiology cohorts in Shanghai and Singapore UM1CA182876 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH · PI YUAN, JIAN-MIN · 2014 to 2018
$4.3M
Genetic and Environmental Risk Factors for Breast Cancer: The Sister StudyZ01ES044005 · NIEHS · NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH SCIENCES · PI SANDLER, DALE P · 1999 to 2008
$1.3M
Puberty and Cancer Epidemiology ZIAES103399 · NIEHS · NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH SCIENCES · PI GOLDBERG, MANDY · 2024 to 2024
$765k
Intramural NIH HHS Z01 ES044005Intramural NIH HHS Z99 ES999999Intramural NIH HHS ZIA ES103399NCCDPHP CDC HHS NU58DP006344NCI NIH HHS HHSN261201800009CNCI NIH HHS HHSN261201800009INCI NIH HHS HHSN261201800015CNCI NIH HHS HHSN261201800015INCI NIH HHS HHSN261201800032CNCI NIH HHS HHSN261201800032INCI NIH HHS P30 CA023100NCI NIH HHS P30 CA033572NCI NIH HHS R01 CA077398NCI NIH HHS R01 CA080205NCI NIH HHS R01 CA144034NCI NIH HHS R35 CA253187NCI NIH HHS U01 CA164974NCI NIH HHS U01 CA182876NCI NIH HHS U01 CA199277NCI NIH HHS UM1 CA164917NCI NIH HHS UM1 CA182876
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundOestrogen plus progestin hormone therapy is an established risk factor for breast cancer in postmenopausal women. We examined the less well-studied association between exogenous hormones and breast cancer in young women, who might use hormone therapy after gynaecological surgery or to relieve perimenopausal symptoms.

methodsIn this pooled cohort analysis, we investigated the relationship between exogenous hormones and breast cancer in young women using data from 10-13 prospective cohorts from North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. The participating cohorts followed up women for incident breast cancer until age 55 years. We used cohort-stratified, multivariable-adjusted Cox proportional hazards regression to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% CI for associations of hormone therapy with incident young-onset breast cancer. We also estimated risk differences based on cumulative risk until age 55 years.

findingsWe included 459 476 women aged 16-54 years (mean 42·0 years [IQR 35·5-49·2]), of whom 8455 (2%) developed young-onset breast cancer (diagnosed before age 55 years; median follow-up 7·8 years [5·2-11·2]). Overall, 15% of participants reported using hormone therapy, with oestrogen plus progestin hormone therapy (6%) and unopposed oestrogen (5%) being the most common types. Cumulative risk of young-onset breast cancer was 4·1% in non-users. Hormone therapy of any type was not associated with incident young-onset breast cancer (HR 0·96 [95% CI 0·88 to 1·04]), but ever oestrogen hormone therapy use was inversely associated (0·86 [0·75 to 0·98]; risk difference -0·5% [-1·0 to -0·0]). The HR for ever oestrogen plus progestin hormone therapy and young-onset breast cancer was 1·10 (0·98 to 1·24), with positive associations observed for long-term use (1·18 [1·01 to 1·38] for >2 years) and use among women without hysterectomy or bilateral oophorectomy (1·15 [1·02 to 1·31]). Oestrogen hormone therapy and young-onset breast cancer association was similar for all breast cancer subtypes, but oestrogen plus progestin hormone therapy was more strongly associated with oestrogen receptor negative (1·44 [1·11 to 1·88]) and triple-negative disease (1·50 [1·02 to 2·20]) than with other subtypes.

interpretationOestrogen hormone therapy use was inversely associated with young-onset breast cancer, and oestrogen plus progestin hormone therapy was associated with higher young-onset breast cancer incidence among women with intact uterus and ovaries. These findings largely parallel results from studies of hormone use and later-onset breast cancer and provide novel evidence for establishing clinical recommendations among younger women.

fundingNIH Intramural Research Program.

Indexed as

Breast NeoplasmsEstrogen Replacement TherapyProgestinsAdolescentAdultAge of OnsetAustraliaEstrogensFemaleHumansIncidenceMiddle AgedPremenopauseProspective StudiesRisk FactorsYoung AdultEstrogensProgestins

Identifiers

PMID40609572
PMCPMC12233149

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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.