Abstract
Objective. Epidemiologic data suggest that aberrant androgen homeostasis may promote aggressive epithelial ovarian cancer biology. Hyperandrogenism results from both obesity and expression of polymorphic androgen receptor (AR) allelotypes harboring short cytosine–adenine–guanine (CAG) repeat sequences; both have been shown to independently correlate with poor overall survival in ovarian cancer. We have hypothesized that the combination of these factors further manifests an aggressive ovarian cancer phenotype. Methods. Genotype analysis of the AR CAG polymorphism was performed on 81 patients with papillary serous epithelial ovarian cancer. Medical records were reviewed for body mass index (BMI), clinico-pathologic factors, and survival. Data were examined using the Fishers exact test, Kaplan–Meier survival, and Cox regression analyses. Results. Overweight or obese women (BMI ≥ 25) with a short AR allele (≤ 19 CAG repeats) demonstrated statistically shorter progression-free survival (9 months) when compared to underweight or ideal body weight women (BMI < 25) and a long AR allele (> 19 CAG repeats; 26 months, p = 0.0002). Overweight/obese women with a short AR allele also demonstrated shorter overall survival (34 months) when compared to underweight/ideal body weight women with a long AR allele (59 months, p = 0.036). On multivariate analyses, the combination of a short AR allele and BMI > 25 was an independent poor prognostic factor after controlling for age, stage, grade, optimal cytoreduction, and AR allele length and BMI independently ( p = 0.05). Conclusion. These data provide further evidence that suggest that hyperandrogenism promotes an aggressive epithelial ovarian cancer phenotype.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.