Endocrine Abstracts

Growth hormone (GH) raises serum levels of insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-I, which is mitogenic and antiapoptotic. There is evidence that raised endogenous levels of GH and IGF-I might be associated with increased risk of certain solid cancers, but there have been no data on long-term risks of solid cancers after GH treatment.A cohort study was undertaken of cancer incidence and mortality in a cohort of 1848 patients in the UK who were treated in childhood and early adul...

Background: Recombinant human growth hormone (r-hGH) has been used for more than 30 years and indications for r-hGH have multiplied worldwide. There has been concern that it might raise mortality, but published data are limited.Methods: The cohort comprised of 3902 UK patients over 18 years of age in 2009, treated with childhood r-hGH at all the major UK growth centres. The total European cohort was 24 232 from eight countries (including the UK), with > ...