Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2004;26(7):563-571
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032004000700009
PURPOSE: to measure changes and predictors of changes in mammographic density of climacteric women, before and one year after hormone replacement therapy. METHODS: seventy climacteric women of 45 years or more participated in the study. They were followed-up at a Climacteric Outpatient Service. All of them used regularly either estrogenic or estroprogestative HRT for one year. They were submitted to one basal mammography and another at the end of the first year. HRT schedules could be different from each other, although with the same bioequivalence. Mammographic density was evaluated blindly at the beginning and at the end of the treatment. Age, ovarian function, time since menopause, body mass index, waist/hip ratio, age at menarche, age at first pregnancy, and smoking were evaluated as well. Mammographic density was classified according to the American College of Radiology BI-RADS system into one of the following four parenchymal patterns: A) entirely liposubstituted breasts, B) liposubstituted breasts with disperse glandular parenchyma, C) heterogeneously dense breasts, and D) extremely dense breasts. We proposed a subdivision of each category in to A e A1, B e B1, C and C1, D and D1 in order to identify smaller variations in mammographic density. Therefore, we attributed initial and final scores of 1-8 to each of the patients according to the mammographic density before and after HRT, corresponding to categories A to D1. The proportions of women that presented increase, decrease and no variation in mammographic density after 1 year of HRT were calculated. In addition, we estimated initial to final score variation using the paired t-test of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). RESULTS: mammographic density increased in 22.9%, decreased in 7.1% and did not change in 70% of the studied cases. A significant difference was observed between the score means before (2.2±1.82) and after HRT (2.5±1.9) (p=0.019). The androgenic distribution of body fat was associated with a denser mammographic pattern. CONCLUSIONS: an increase in mammographic density was shown in women undergoing HRT, and was most pronounced in women with androgenic fat distribution. Additional studies must be carried out in order to evaluate if this increment in mammographic density could impair the mammographic screening of breast cancer.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2004;26(1):45-52
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032004000100007
PURPOSE: to evaluate the relationship between epidemiologic, anthropometric, reproductive and hormonal factors and mammographic density in postmenopausal women. METHODS: this is a retrospective, cross-sectional study, including 144 women aged 45 years or more, with at least 12 months of amenorrhea and who were non users of hormone replacement therapy during the last six months. Medical charts were reviewed to evaluate age, weight, body mass index (BMI), parity, age at menarche, age at menopause and levels of estradiol, follicle stimulating (FSH) and luteinizing hormones. Mammograms were analyzed by two blinded investigators. The films were taken in the craniocaudal and mediolateral views and mammography was classified as dense and nondense, according to the Wolfe criteria. For statistical analysis, the frequency, median, minimum and maximum values, the Wilcoxon test and the odds ratio were used. Multiple logistic regression was performed, using the stepwise selection, with a 5% significance level. RESULTS: the frequency of dense breasts was 45%. Women with dense breasts were of lower weight (60.5 vs. 71.9 kg - p<0.01), had a lower BMI (25.9 vs 31.0 kg/m² - p<0.01), a shorter time since onset of menopause (6.0 vs 10 years - p<0.01) and higher levels of FSH (75.2 vs 60.3 mU/mL - p<0.01). The probability of having dense breasts decreased in women whose weight was 67 kg or more (OR = 4.0, CI 95% = 1.50-10.66), BMI was higher than 30 kg/m² (OR = 6.69, CI 95% = 1.67-36.81), time since onset of menopause was superior or equal to seven years (OR = 2.05, CI 95% = 1.05-3.99) and FSH levels were lower than 134.8 mU/mL. CONCLUSION: weight, BMI, parity, time since menopause and FSH levels were significantly associated with mammographic density patterns.