Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33820799›Full record

SynthesisCancer research2021

Association of the Age at Menarche with Site-Specific Cancer Risks in Pooled Data from Nine Cohorts.

Barbara J Fuhrman, Steven C Moore, Celia Byrne, Issam Makhoul, Cari M Kitahara, Amy Berrington de González, Martha S Linet, Elisabete Weiderpass, Hans-Olov Adami, Neal D Freedman and 18 more

Open access · bronzeAbstract readMeta-Analysis
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Cancer research, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 43 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
43citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
6.3field-weighted citation impact, top 2% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

43 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 73 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
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  7. Quantitative analysis of trends and inequalities in disease burden and care quality of gynecological cancers, 1990-2021.European journal of cancer prevention : the official journal of the European Cancer Prevention Organisation (ECP) · 2026
    Article
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  14. Understanding risk factors for endometrial cancer in young women.Journal of the National Cancer Institute · 2025
    Article
  15. Review
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

28 authors at 12 institutions in 3 countries.

Barbara J Fuhrman *University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. barbara.fuhrman@pitt.edu.ORCID 0000-0002-1777-9888
Steven C Moore *Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, Maryland.ORCID 0000-0002-8169-1661
Celia ByrneUniformed Health Services University, Bethesda, Maryland.
Issam MakhoulUniversity of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, Arkansas.
Cari M KitaharaDivision of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, Maryland.
Amy Berrington de GonzálezDivision of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, Maryland.
Martha S LinetDivision of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, Maryland.
Elisabete WeiderpassInternational Agency for Research on Cancer, World Health Organization, Lyon, France.ORCID 0000-0003-2237-0128
Hans-Olov AdamiHarvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Neal D FreedmanDivision of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, Maryland.
Linda M LiaoDivision of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, Maryland.
Charles E MatthewsDivision of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, Maryland.
Rachael Z Stolzenberg-SolomonDivision of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, Maryland.ORCID 0000-0003-3698-7006
Mia M GaudetDivision of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, Maryland.ORCID 0000-0002-6429-4007
Alpa V PatelEpidemiology Research Program, American Cancer Society, Atlanta, Georgia.
I-Min LeeBrigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.
Julie E BuringBrigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.
Alicja WolkInstitute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden.ORCID 0000-0001-7387-6845
Susanna C LarssonInstitute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden.ORCID 0000-0003-0118-0341
Anna E PrizmentDivision of Hematology, Oncology and Transplantation, Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Kim RobienExercise and Nutrition Sciences, Public Health, George Washington University, Washington, District of Columbia.ORCID 0000-0002-2120-2280
Michael SpriggsInformation Management Services, Rockville, Maryland.
David P CheckDivision of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, Maryland.ORCID 0000-0003-3887-0493
Neil MurphySection of Nutrition and Metabolism, International Agency for Research on Cancer, World Health Organization, Lyon, France.
Marc J GunterSection of Nutrition and Metabolism, International Agency for Research on Cancer, World Health Organization, Lyon, France.
Harold L Van DusenInformation Management Services, Rockville, Maryland.
Regina G ZieglerDivision of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, Maryland.ORCID 0000-0002-5100-9852
Robert N HooverDivision of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, Maryland.
Department of Health and Human Services · USCentre international de recherche sur le cancer · FRAmerican Cancer Society · USBrigham and Women's Hospital · USInformation Management Services · USKarolinska Institutet · SEGeorge Washington University · USHarvard University · USUniformed Services University of the Health Sciences · USUniversity of Arkansas for Medical Sciences · USUniversity of Minnesota Medical Center · USUniversity of Pittsburgh · US

Funding

Women's Health Study: Continued Follow-upR01CA047988 · NCI · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · PI BURING, JULIE E., LEE, I-MIN · 1991 to 2014
$28.2M
EPIDEMIOLOGY OF CANCER IN A COHORT OF OLDER WOMENR01CA039742 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA TWIN CITIES · PI LAZOVICH, DEANN · 1985 to 2014
$8.0M
Studies of other risk factors for radiosensitive tumorsZIACP010219 · NCI · DIVISION OF CANCER EPIDEMIOLOGY AND GENETICS · PI KITAHARA, CARI · 2011 to 2025
$6.0M
Women's Health Study: Continued Follow-UpR01HL080467 · NHLBI · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · PI BURING, JULIE E. · 2005 to 2010
$4.5M
Women's Health Study: Infrastructure support for continued cohort follow-upU01CA182913 · NCI · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · PI BURING, JULIE E., LEE, I-MIN · 2019 to 2023
$4.0M
The Women's Health Study: Infrastructure Support for Continued Cohort Follow-upUM1CA182913 · NCI · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · PI BURING, JULIE E., LEE, I-MIN · 2014 to 2018
$4.0M
TRIAL OF VITAMIN E, BETA-CAROTENE &ASPRIN IN WOMENR01HL043851 · NHLBI · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · PI BURING, JULIE E · 1991 to 2000
$1.6M
The Women's Health Study: Addition of New Data to Maximize its Research ImpactRC1HL099355 · NHLBI · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · PI BURING, JULIE E. · 2009 to 2010
$992k
Intramural NIH HHS Z99 CA999999NCI NIH HHS R01 CA039742NCI NIH HHS R01 CA047988NCI NIH HHS U01 CA182913NCI NIH HHS UM1 CA182913NCI NIH HHS Y99 CA999999NHLBI NIH HHS R01 HL043851NHLBI NIH HHS R01 HL080467NHLBI NIH HHS RC1 HL099355World Health Organization 001
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The average age at menarche declined in European and U.S. populations during the 19th and 20th centuries. The timing of pubertal events may have broad implications for chronic disease risks in aging women. Here we tested for associations of recalled menarcheal age with risks of 19 cancers in 536,450 women [median age, 60 years (range, 31-39 years)] in nine prospective U.S. and European cohorts that enrolled participants from 1981 to 1998. Cox regression estimated multivariable-adjusted HRs and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for associations of the age at menarche with risk of each cancer in each cohort and random-effects meta-analysis was used to generate summary estimates for each cancer. Over a median 10 years of follow-up, 60,968 women were diagnosed with a first primary incident cancer. Inverse linear associations were observed for seven of 19 cancers studied. Each additional year in the age at menarche was associated with reduced risks of endometrial cancer (HR = 0.91; 95% CI, 0.89-0.94), liver cancer (HR = 0.92; 95% CI, 0.85-0.99), melanoma (HR = 0.95; 95% CI, 0.93-0.98), bladder cancer (HR = 0.96; 95% CI, 0.93-0.99), and cancers of the colon (HR = 0.97; 95% CI, 0.96-0.99), lung (HR = 0.98; 95% CI, 0.96-0.99), and breast (HR = 0.98; 95% CI, 0.93-0.99). All but one of these associations remained statistically significant following adjustment for baseline body mass index. Similarities in the observed associations between menarche and seven cancers suggest shared underlying causes rooted early in life. We propose as a testable hypothesis that early exposure to sex hormones increases mid-life cancer risks by altering functional capacities of stem cells with roles in systemic energy balance and tissue homeostasis. SIGNIFICANCE: Age at menarche is associated with risk for seven cancers in middle-aged women, and understanding the shared underlying causal pathways across these cancers may suggest new avenues for cancer prevention.

Indexed as

AdolescentAdultAgedAged, 80 and overAge FactorsBody Mass IndexBreast NeoplasmsChildCohort StudiesColonic NeoplasmsEndometrial NeoplasmsEuropeFemaleHumansLiver NeoplasmsLung Neoplasms

Identifiers

PMID33820799
PMCPMC8137527
OpenAlexW3150077228

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
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Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.