Estrogens in female thyroid cancer: alteration of urinary profiles in pre- and post-operative cases

To evaluate the potential effect of estrogens in premenopausal female thyroid cancer, the concentrations of 14 estrogens were quantitatively determined in the urine of pre- and post-operative patients with thyroid papillary cancer (18 patients case, 26∼54 years) and normal female subjects (20 cases, 31∼52 years). The highly sensitive gas chromatography–mass spectrometry–selected ion-monitoring method was used for estrogens analysis. And an estrogen-oxidative metabolism and 16α-hydroxyestrone to 2-hydroxyestrone (16α-OH E1/2-OH E1) which is the two primary and competing site of estrogen-oxidation, were determined. Catechol estrogens, including 2-OH E1, were also increased without significant changes of the other estrogen metabolites in pre-operative patients with thyroid papillary cancer compared with normal subjects. The lowest mean value of 16α-OH E1/2-OH E1 was remarked in pre-operative patients, and it was significantly different from the ratio of post-operative cases. As a result, it is suggested that the increase of 2-hydroxylation in estrogen metabolism may have a significant association with female thyroid cancer.