Hormonal regulation of the normal breast

Abstract

The breast is a target organ for reproductive hormones but basic knowledge on hormonal effects is very poor. Available data indicate that the breast is regulated in a specific manner which is distinct from the endometrium and other target organs. It seems clear that the breast undergoes cyclic changes during the menstrual cycle and that in vivo there is a direct stimulatory action of progestogens on the breast. In surgically postmenopausal female macaques continuous combined estrogen/progestogen therapy was found to induce greater proliferation than estrogen alone.