Skip to main content

SABCS: Positive Outcomes Seen When Pausing Endocrine Therapy to Become Pregnant

Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on Dec 7, 2023.

By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, Dec. 7, 2023 -- Among patients with hormone receptor-positive breast cancer who paused endocrine therapy (ET) to become pregnant, fertility preservation and/or assisted reproductive technologies (ART) do not adversely affect three-year cancer recurrence rates, according to a study presented at the annual San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, held from Dec. 5 to 9 in San Antonio.

Hatem A. Azim Jr., M.D., Ph.D., from the School of Medicine and Breast Cancer Center at the Tecnológico de Monterrey in Cordoba, Mexico, and colleagues conducted a secondary analysis of an international, single-arm, prospective trial that enrolled patients aged 42 years and younger with stage 2 to 3 hormone receptor-positive breast cancer who had received 18 to 30 months of ET and paused ET to become pregnant.

The researchers found that 74 percent of the 497 patients reported at least one pregnancy. Young age was the only factor associated with shorter time to pregnancy in a multivariable model. At diagnosis and prior to enrollment, 36.0 percent of the patients had undergone ovarian stimulation for embryo/oocyte cryopreservation, of whom 37.9 percent reported cryopreserved embryo transfer after enrollment. Overall, 43.3 percent of the patients reported using ART after enrollment, including ovarian stimulation for in vitro fertilization or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (37.2 percent). The only ART independently associated with a higher chance of pregnancy was cryopreserved embryo transfer (odds ratio, 2.41) in a multivariable model. At three years, the cumulative incidence of breast cancer-free interval events was similar for those who underwent ovarian stimulation for cryopreservation at diagnosis and before enrollment and for those who did not (9.7 versus 8.7 percent).

"Participants who underwent cryopreserved embryo transfer during the study had higher pregnancy rates with no apparent short-term detrimental impact on breast cancer outcome," Azim said in a statement.

Press Release

More Information

Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Read this next

Infertility Treatment Linked to Heart Disease Hospitalization

TUESDAY, May 21, 2024 -- Infertility treatment is associated with an increased risk for hospitalization due to heart disease, according to a study published in the May issue of...

For Women With Obesity, Risk for Breast Cancer Drops After Bariatric Surgery

THURSDAY, May 16, 2024 -- For women with obesity, the risk for breast cancer is reduced after bariatric surgery, according to a study published online May 15 in JAMA...

Fat-Enlarged Axillary Nodes on Mammogram May Indicate Higher CVD Risk

TUESDAY, May 14, 2024 -- Fat-enlarged axillary nodes on screening mammograms can predict the risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD), according to a study presented at the annual...

More news resources

Subscribe to our newsletter

Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.