Dear Babak, I think answer of your question is yes.

There are many published papers which reveal association between excess GH (e.g. Acromegaly) and cancer and indeed it is consider as a risk factor for cancers.

Increase of thyroid cancer risk in Acromegaly:

Pituitary. 2014 Aug;17(4):299-306. doi: 10.1007/s11102-013-0501-5.

Increased thyroid cancer risk in acromegaly.

Dagdelen S1, Cinar N, Erbas T.

Increased CRC(Colorectal cancer) risk in Acromegaly:

Best Pract Res Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2008 Aug;22(4):639-57. doi: 10.1016/j.beem.2008.08.011.

Acromegaly, growth hormone and cancer risk.

Renehan AG1, Brennan BM.

Increase of Brain tumor risk in acromegaly:

Cancer Causes Control. 2002 Jun;13(5):395-400.

Acromegaly and cancer risk: a cohort study in Sweden and Denmark.

Baris D1, Gridley G, Ron E, Weiderpass E, Mellemkjaer L, Ekbom A, Olsen JH, Baron JA, Fraumeni JF Jr.

and http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/522728

Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). 2006 Feb;64(2):115-21.

Does growth hormone cause cancer?

Jenkins PJ1, Mukherjee A, Shalet SM.

The ability of GH, via its mediator peptide IGF-1, to influence regulation of cellular growth has been the focus of much interest in recent years. In this review, we will explore the association between GH and cancer. Available experimental data support the suggestion that GH/IGF-1 status may influence neoplastic tissue growth. Extensive epidemiological data exist that also support a link between GH/IGF-1 status and cancer risk. Epidemiological studies of patients with acromegaly indicate an increased risk of colorectal cancer,

best

mehdi

Dear Babak, I think answer of your question is yes.

There are many published papers which reveal association between excess GH (e.g. Acromegaly) and cancer and indeed it is consider as a risk factor for cancers.

Increase of thyroid cancer risk in Acromegaly:

Pituitary. 2014 Aug;17(4):299-306. doi: 10.1007/s11102-013-0501-5.

Increased thyroid cancer risk in acromegaly.

Dagdelen S1, Cinar N, Erbas T.

Increased CRC(Colorectal cancer) risk in Acromegaly:

Best Pract Res Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2008 Aug;22(4):639-57. doi: 10.1016/j.beem.2008.08.011.

Acromegaly, growth hormone and cancer risk.

Renehan AG1, Brennan BM.

Increase of Brain tumor risk in acromegaly:

Cancer Causes Control. 2002 Jun;13(5):395-400.

Acromegaly and cancer risk: a cohort study in Sweden and Denmark.

Baris D1, Gridley G, Ron E, Weiderpass E, Mellemkjaer L, Ekbom A, Olsen JH, Baron JA, Fraumeni JF Jr.

and http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/522728

Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). 2006 Feb;64(2):115-21.

Does growth hormone cause cancer?

Jenkins PJ1, Mukherjee A, Shalet SM.

The ability of GH, via its mediator peptide IGF-1, to influence regulation of cellular growth has been the focus of much interest in recent years. In this review, we will explore the association between GH and cancer. Available experimental data support the suggestion that GH/IGF-1 status may influence neoplastic tissue growth. Extensive epidemiological data exist that also support a link between GH/IGF-1 status and cancer risk. Epidemiological studies of patients with acromegaly indicate an increased risk of colorectal cancer,

best

mehdi

Dear Mehdi,

Thanks for your response. Several case control studies have shown an association between acromegaly and increased risk of colon and thyroid cancers. It has also been stated in literature that excess GH is associated with malignancy. However I couldn't find an epidemiologic case control study which has compared the prevalence of malignancies in general, in patients with and without acromegaly. Although there are some studies which support increased risk of malignancy in patients with acromegaly, they have not found a significant difference in disease duration, initial GH levels and standardized IGF-1 values in acromegalic patients with versus those without cancer. The only significantly different variable was age. (Dagdelen et all 2014, pituitary, Increased thyroid cancer risk in acromegaly) We also couldn't find any significant difference in these values in our patients except for age. These findings do not support the role of GH in tumorigenesis. So let's change the question: Does GH plays a role in tumorigenesis? If yes, is this role confined to colon and thyroid cells?

Growth hormone (GH) is secreted from the pituitary gland, and then, GH stimulates the secretion of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) by hepatocytes. IGF-1 rather than GH contributes to the normal or cancerous tissues. Upon carcinogenesis, IGF-1/mTOR axis promotes tumor cell proliferation and resistance to apoptosis. Given that the activity of IGF-1/mTOR signal pathway is crucial for the tissue development and cellular differentiation, it is also likely that persistent IGF-1 secretion is partly responsible for the expansion of the tumor-initiating cells with the mutations of the driver genes such as BRAF, c-Myc etc.