[Effect of radiation and drug therapy on the hormonal status of patients with breast cancer, taking into consideration the receptor level of the tumor].

A study was made of the content of the steroid and peptide hormones in the blood of 115 patients with Stage III a,b,c breast cancer (54 patients at the reproductive age and 61 in the menopause) before treatment and during radio- and chemotherapy. A group of healthy women (28 with preserved menstruation and 20 in the menopause) was taken as controls. Data on the concentration of the steroid hormones in the patients' blood were compared with the presence of the respective receptors in tumor. Before treatment a significant rise of the estradiol concentration was noted in the blood of the menopause patients, that of prolactin both in the menopause patients and in the patients with preserved menstruation. A raised testosterone concentration was also noted in the patients with preserved menstruation. After radiotherapy the blood prolactin level, particularly in the patients with preserved menstruation, increased more than 2-fold. There was no correlation between the levels of the steroid and peptide hormones during therapy and its efficacy. The prolactin level can be used as a criterion of the efficacy of antitumor therapy, its stable rise in operated patients during therapy being an unfavorable prognostic sign.