Research round up: Overlooked changes in menopause, routine breast cancer screening for better outcomes and more

Femtech World explores the latest research developments in women’s health.

Global study underscores overlooked health changes during menopause

A new study has highlighted critical and often overlooked changes in women’s health during menopause.

Drawing from anonymised data from 1.12 million females across the globe, the analysis reveals significant transformations in sleep quality, body composition, and cardiovascular health that begin in perimenopause and persist through postmenopause.

This large-scale research – carried out by from Withings and analysed by Withings Observatory for Health and Longevity – provides some of the most comprehensive physiological insights to date on the impact of menopause, underscoring the importance of better awareness, monitoring, and support for women navigating this natural yet complex life stage.

The study found shifts in sleep patterns, showing that women may experience up to a 33 per cent increase in nighttime awakenings, averaging between three and four wake-ups per night, and that sleep disorders, including insomnia and sleep apnoea, increase by 374 per cent

Furthermore, the study found changes to body composition, showing that abdominal and visceral fat naturally increase by 43 per cent, and changes to cardiovascular health, showing that blood pressure rises by +3.384 mmHg, and the risk of cardiovascular diseases, like atrial fibrillation, increases by 293 per cent.

Routine breast cancer screening brings better outcomes for patients

Compared to breast cancer that is symptom-detected, patients with breast cancer detected via routine screening mammography are more likely to have improved clinical outcomes, according to a new study.

While it is commonly understood that early detection of breast cancer results in better patient outcomes, national cancer registries in the US and Canada don’t track the method of cancer detection.

Since improvements in patient outcomes may be incorrectly attributed solely to treatment advances, identifying the association between the method of breast cancer detection and clinical outcomes may have a direct impact on health care policy.

In a retrospective observational analysis, researchers collected data of patients aged 40 years or older who were diagnosed with breast cancer in 2016.

Of the 821 patients included in the study, just over 50 per cent had breast cancer diagnosed as the result of a symptom, rather than as the result of a screening mammogram.

Compared to patients with symptom-detected breast cancer, patients with screening-detected breast cancer had significantly lower odds of an advanced stage of breast cancer, lower odds of undergoing a mastectomy and a lower hazard ratio of death.

Breast cancers detected from symptoms were more frequent in women aged 40 to 49 years and over 75 years of age, 72.9 per cent and 70.4 per cent, respectively. All-cause deaths were also higher among patients who were not undergoing regular screening.

Most surprising was how many patients died shortly after their breast cancer was detected, the researchers noted, showing that within only 6.7 years of follow-up, almost 20 per cent of the 821 breast cancer patients had died, half of them from breast cancer.

The researchers concluded that reducing the barriers to breast cancer screening in women aged 40 to 74 will improve patient outcomes and reduce the number of patient deaths from cancer.

Women over age 75 might also benefit from screening, as these patients were more likely to be diagnosed due to symptoms and required more intensive treatment.

Longer reproductive years linked to healthier brain ageing in women

The number of years a woman spends in her reproductive phase between her first period and menopause may be linked to how well her brain ages later in life, a new study has shown.

For the study, brain scans from over 1,000 postmenopausal women were analysed, finding that women who had their first period earlier, experienced menopause later, or had a longer reproductive span showed signs of slower brain ageing.

According to lead researcher, associate professor Eileen Lueders, of the University of Auckland’s School of Psychology, the findings support the idea that estradiol – the most potent and prevalent form of estrogen during a woman’s reproductive years – may help protect the brain as it ages.

The research may point toward the potential for health interventions such as hormone treatment in the years leading up to menopause and immediately afterward to combat an increased risk of Alzheimer’s for some women.

While this new study adds to the growing evidence that estradiol may play a protective role in brain health, Luders cautions that the effects were small, and estradiol levels were not directly measured.

Other factors like genetics, lifestyle, and overall health also influence brain ageing.

Research to observe effects of fentanyl during pregnancy

Wayne State University researchers have been provided a National Institutes of Health (NIH) two-year grant that will aid in measuring the effects of fentanyl during pregnancy on maternal behaviours and offspring at birth through early development.

The principal investigators are Shane Perrine, associate professor of psychiatry and behavioural neurosciences in Wayne State’s School of Medicine, and Susanne Brummelte, professor of psychology in Wayne State’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Both researchers credited a news report and a previous NIH grant received by Brummelte to examine the effects of opioids during pregnancy as what inspired them to explore this area.

The study will determine the impact of gestational fentanyl exposure on morbidity and mortality, developmental milestones, external morphology, blood cholesterol, brain morphogen signaling, and neonatal opioid withdrawal and related behavioural measures in offspring.

The team will also measure brain volume, morphology and the neurochemistry of offspring using magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy in vivo.

Antibiotics taken during pregnancy may reduce preterm births

According to a new study, a daily dose of a safe antibiotic may reduce the risk of preterm births.

Maternal infections and inflammation during pregnancy are linked to adverse birth outcomes, particularly for babies born to mothers living with HIV, who have a greater risk of being born too small or too soon.

For this study, an international group of researchers looked at almost 1000 pregnant women in Zimbabwe, finding that a daily dose of trimethoprim–sulfamethoxazole may have led to fewer babies being born early.

Among women living with HIV, those who received the antibiotic had larger babies who were less likely to be preterm.

The participants received regular antenatal care during their pregnancies and data regarding their birth outcomes were recorded.

Although birthweight did not differ significantly between the two groups, the trimethoprim–sulfamethoxazole group showed a 40 per cent reduction in the proportion of preterm births, compared to the placebo group.

Overall, 6.9 per cent of mothers receiving the drug had babies born preterm, compared to 11.5 per cent of mothers receiving the placebo, and no women receiving antibiotics had babies born prior to 28 weeks.

For babies born to a small group of 131 women with HIV, the reduction in premature births was especially marked, with only 2 per cent of births in the trimethoprim–sulfamethoxazole group preterm, as compared with 14 per cent in the placebo group.

Babies exposed to antibiotics during pregnancy also showed a 177 gram increase in their birth weight.