Long-term outcomes of bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy in women with personal history of breast cancer

Abstract

Objectives To investigate the association between bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (BSO) and long-term health outcomes in women with a personal history of breast cancer.

Methods and analysis We used data on women diagnosed with invasive breast cancer between 1995 and 2019 from the National Cancer Registration Dataset (NCRD) in England. The data were linked to the Hospital Episode Statistics-Admitted Patient Care dataset to identify BSO delivery. Long-term health outcomes were selected from both datasets. Multivariable Cox regression was used to examine the associations, with BSO modelled as a time-dependent covariate. The associations were investigated separately by age at BSO.

Results We identified 568 883 women, 23 401 of whom had BSO after the breast cancer diagnosis. There was an increased risk of total cardiovascular diseases with an HR of 1.10 (95% CI 1.04 to 1.16) in women who had BSO<55 years and 1.07 (95% CI 1.01 to 1.13) for women who had BSO≥55 years. There was an increased risk of ischaemic heart diseases, but there was no association with cerebrovascular diseases. BSO at any age was associated with an increased risk of depression (HR 1.20, 95% CI 1.12 to 1.28) and increased risk of second non-breast cancer in older women (HR 1.21, 95%CI 1.08 to 1.35). BSO in older women was associated with reduced risk of all-cause mortality (HR 0.92, 95% CI 0.87 to 096), but not in women who had BSO<55 years.

Conclusion In women with a personal history of breast cancer, BSO before and after the age of 55 years is associated with an increased risk of long-term outcomes. BSO after 55 years is associated with reduced all-cause mortality. Family history or genetic predisposition may confound these associations.