Photo Credit: Mohammed Haneefa Nizamudeen

The following is a summary of “Association of endogenous sex hormones with endometrial cancer risk: A systematic review and meta-an9 alysis,” published in the April 2025 issue of European Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Reproductive Biology by Zhu et al. 

Researchers conducted a retrospective study to analyze the association between circulating levels of sex hormones and sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) with the risk of endometrial cancer (EC).  

They searched PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus databases to identify relevant studies. Odds ratios (OR) with 95% CI were used to combine effect sizes, employing a random effects model.  

The results showed that 16 studies with 2,92,695 participants were included. The SHBG levels were inversely associated with EC risk (OR: 0.67). Higher levels of total testosterone (OR: 1.70), free testosterone (OR: 1.75), dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (OR: 1.39) and androstenedione (OR: 1.58) were positively linked to EC risk. Estrogens such as estrone (OR: 1.55), unconjugated estrone (OR: 1.86), estradiol (OR: 1.38), unconjugated estradiol (OR: 2.14), estriol (OR: 1.75), and unconjugated estriol (OR: 1.99) were associated with increased EC risk, while conjugated estrogens showed no significant associations. A non-linear dose–response relationship was observed for SHBG, estrone, estradiol, and total testosterone. Age, cancer type, geographic region, menopausal status, study type, and covariate adjustments significantly influenced the results. Significant associations were found only for postmenopausal women.  

Investigators concluded an inverse association between SHBG and EC, while it identified a direct relationship between sex hormones, excluding conjugated estrogens, and EC risk specifically in postmenopausal women. 

Source: ejog.org/article/S0301-2115(25)00266-0/abstract