Gestational diabetes affects about 1 in every 7 pregnancies, although it typically disappears by the time of delivery New research finds the condition has no effect on a woman's long-term risk for breast cancer Gestational diabetes does have links to higher odds for heart trouble and other health issues, however WEDNESDAY, Aug. 8, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- About 14% of women will develop diabetes while pregnant, a condition known as . It's linked with obesity and older age, and the number of cases is growing although they usually resolve by the time of delivery.
Now, a new study delivers reassuring news for women hit by gestational diabetes: The condition will not raise their long-term odds for breast cancer. The study was led by , of the Steno Diabetes Center Odense at Odense University Hospital in Denmark. Her team tracked outcomes for over 708,000 Danish women who gave birth (at an average age of 28) between 1997 and 2018.
None had any history of diabetes or breast cancer before their pregnancy, and 24,140 (3.4%) of the women were diagnosed with gestational diabetes during one or more pregnancies. The women's health was tracked for an average of almost 12 years, over which time 7,609 of the women developed breast cancer.
Women who'd had gestational diabetes had no higher odds of developing breast cancer than those who hadn't, Christensen's team found. That was true for breast cancer overall, premenopausal breast cancer and postmenopausal breast cancer, they added. The findi.