Inhibitory effect of luteinising hormone-releasing hormone analogues on human endometrial cancer in vitro

We studied the effects of luteinising hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) agon ist leuproreline (1 mu M for 96 h) and LHRH antagonist cetrorelix on the ce ll growth of primary cultures from nine human endometrial cancers using the sulphorhodamine colorimetric test. Histological examinations and reverse t ranscription and polymerase chain reaction amplification (RT-PCR) for LHRH receptors were also performed. The endometrial cancers examined had a mediu m to high degree of proliferative activity and a low degree of apoptotic po wer; furthermore, they expressed the LHRH receptor RNA variably, detectable in 71% of cases. The addition of leuproreline or cetrorelix to cell cultur es inhibited growth in a statistically significant way compared to untreate d control cells; nevertheless, the percentage of cell growth inhibition obt ained was very variable. These data suggest that LHRH analogues can exert d ifferential inhibitory effects on the growth of endometrial cancer, which s eems to be independent of the expression of specific LHRH receptors. (C) 20 00 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.