Alterations of serum lipids in breast cancer: effects of disease activity, treatment, and hormonal factors.

Fasting venous blood collected from 83 patients with breast cancer was analyzed for triglycerides; total, high-density lipoprotein (HDL), and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol; tumor necrosis factor (TNF alpha); glucose; creatinine; insulin; glucagon; growth hormone; cortisol; and thyrotropin. Patients with stage IV disease had significantly higher (P less than 0.05) triglyceride concentrations and significantly lower (P less than 0.05) concentrations of total and HDL cholesterol than did patients with less advanced disease or age-matched controls. Furthermore, LDL cholesterol concentrations in patients with boney metastases were significantly lower (P less than 0.05) than concentrations in patients with liver or liver plus boney metastases or in controls. These results could not be attributed to smoking habits, alcohol consumption, or treatment. We observed no correlations between serum concentrations of lipid and concentrations of TNF alpha, insulin, glucose, creatinine, cortisol, growth hormone, or thyrotropin. However, there was a significant (P less than 0.05) negative correlation between total cholesterol and glucagon and between LDL cholesterol and glucagon for patients with stage II, III, and IV disease, suggesting that glucagon may reduce LDL cholesterol concentrations by an as-yet-unidentified mechanism.