Abstract
The relation of the endocrinological factors to estrogen receptor (ER) status is still unclear. In this paper the effect of hypophyseal gonadotropins on ER status was studied in 40 postmenopausal patients with breast cancer. The plasma luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) levels before and after luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LH-RH) stimulation at an i. v. dose of 100μg were measured time-depedently. ER in the tumor was measured by dextran-coated charcoal methods. Twenty-three out of the 40 patients were ER positive, 17 being negative. The basal levels of LH and FSH were 98.7±45.5 mIU/ml and 105.5±51.2 mIU/ml in ER positive patients, and were 91.4±31.4 mIU/ml and 87.5±32.6 mIU/ml in ER negatives, respectively. There was no significant difference in basal LH and FSH between ER-positive and negative patients. No ER-relating time-dependent pattern in LH and FSH levels was found. Responses after LH-RH stimulation were not different between two groups. In conclusion, hypophyseal gonadotropin levels and its reserves as host factors were not related with ER status in the postmenopausal patients with breast cancer.
