Cortisol, estrogens and risk of ischaemic heart disease, cancer and all-cause mortality in postmenopausal women: a prospective cohort study.

Background Chronic stress may affect morbidity and mortality through neuroendocrine changes, and the ratio of cortisol to sex steroid hormones has been suggested as a biomarker of stress. We aim to address a relation between the ratio of cortisol to estrogens (C/E) and risk of ischaemic heart disease (IHD), hormone-dependent cancers and all-cause mortality among postmenopausal women. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]