Pregnancy hormone hCG protects against breast cancer even in short-term treatments

One of the most effective ways to prevent breast cancer is through a full-term pregnancy at an early age. Studies out of Fox Chase Cancer Center have linked this protective effect to the presence of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), a hormone produced by the placenta to maintain the early stages of pregnancy. Their findings in an animal model of breast cancer showed that rats exposed to hCG over a 21 day period (the length of rat pregnancy), are far less likely to develop breast cancer when exposed to a known carcinogen.

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