Androgens and ovarian cancers

Ovarian cancer is one of the most lethal malignancies in women. Numerous studies indicate that the steroid hormones have been implicated in the etiology and/or progression of epithelial ovarian cancer and support a role for androgens, including: 1) androgen receptor (AR) is present in primate ovaries at almost all stages of the menstrual cycle and involve folliculogenesis and ovulation; 2) high androgen serum levels show high risk of ovarian cancer and ovarian cancer occurring after menopause when the balance of ovarian steroid production shifts from estrogens to androgens; 3) ovarian cancer tissue shows a 90% AR positive rate and is associated with favorable outcomes; 4) androgens promote or inhibit ovarian cancer cell growth; 5) chemotherapy decreases androgen production from cancer cells. This review seeks to summarize our current understanding about the roles of androgens, AR and AR coregulators in the initiation and/or progression of ovarian cancers.

Androgen; Androgen receptor; Androgen receptor co-regulators; Anti-androgen; Anti-oxidant; Ovanan cancer

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