| The timing of natural menopause is an important breast cancer risk factor. Several epidemiological studies suggest that the timing of natural menopause has a strong genetic component. We used existing genotype data from BPC3 to investigate the association between common genetic variation in the form of SNPs in three candidate genes (GNRH1, GNRHR, FSHB) and the timing of natural menopause. For FSHB, subjects carrying the heterozygous (CT) genotype (OR, 1.61, 95% CI: 1.15-2.25) of rs601681 had a nominally statistically significant increased risk of later age at natural menopause in comparison to the CC genotype. Subjects carrying either the heterozygous (CT) genotype (OR, 1.74; 95% CI, 1.21-2.50) or the homozygous recessive (TT) genotype (OR, 1.56; 95% CI, 1.02-2.37) of rs6169 had a nominally statistically significant increased risk of later age at natural menopause in comparison to the CC genotype. These findings may highlight an important genetic determinant of menopausal timing. |
