Breast cancer risk in relation to history of preeclampsia and hyperemesis gravidarum: Prospective analysis in the Generations Study

Abstract

Preeclampsia and hyperemesis are pregnancy complications associated with altered sex hormone levels. Previous studies suggest preeclampsia may be associated with a decreased risk of subsequent breast cancer and hyperemesis with an increased risk, but the evidence remains unclear. We used data from the Generations Study, a large prospective study of women in the United Kingdom, to estimate relative risks of breast cancer in relation to a history of preeclampsia and hyperemesis using Cox Regression adjusting for known breast cancer risk factors. During 7.5 years average follow-up of 82,053 parous women, 1,969 were diagnosed with invasive or in-situ breast cancer. Women who had experienced preeclampsia during pregnancy had a significantly decreased risk of premenopausal breast cancer (hazard ratio (HR) =0.67, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.49-0.90) and of HER2-enriched tumours (HR=0.33, 95% CI: 0.12-0.91), but there was no association with overall (HR=0.90, 95% CI: 0.80-1.02) or postmenopausal (HR=0.97, 95% CI: 0.85-1.12) breast cancer risk. Risk reductions among premenopausal women were strongest within 20 years since the last pregnancy with preeclampsia. Hyperemesis was associated with a significantly increased risk of HER2-enriched tumours (HR=1.76, 95% CI: 1.07-2.87), but not with other intrinsic subtypes or breast cancer risk overall. These results provide evidence that preeclampsia is associated with a decreased risk of premenopausal and HER2-enriched breast cancer and that hyperemesis, although not associated with breast cancer risk overall, may be associated with raised risk of HER2-enriched tumours. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

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