Study: Early Menopause Could Raise Breast Cancer Risk

Researchers in the United States have said women who underwent menopause at an age younger than 46 were nearly twice as likely to have breast cancer compared to others their age.

Results of the study are published in ‘The ‘Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism’.

The research focused on women with primary ovarian insufficiency (POI), a condition that occurs when the ovaries stop working properly due to the early loss of eggs.

This causes some affected persons to go through menopause at an earlier age than usual.

“When women go through primary ovarian insufficiency are at risk for a number of diseases like osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease (CVDs),” noted senior researcher Dr. Corrine Welt, an endocrinologist with the University of Utah School of Medicine in Salt Lake City.

“Our results suggest some of these women should be monitored over their lifetimes for cancer risk as well,” she added.