AMH as an ovarian function predictor in premenopausal female breast cancer patients receiving chemotherapy is effective only for those over 35 years old

Background The predicting value of AMH for ovarian dysfunction after chemotherapy is controversial. This study is designed to evaluate the value of serum AMH clinically and theoretically. Patients, animals and methods We detected the serum estradiol, FSH and AMH in 144 pre-menopausal women with breast cancer receiving cyclophosphamide-based chemotherapy. The differences of hormones before and after chemotherapy were compared; the correlations among the hormones and amenorrhea, menstrual recovery were analyzed. In addition, serum AMH was detected randomly in 177 normal healthy women and 36 normal female C57BL/6J mice of different ages, meanwhile the status of ovary follicles was observed. Furthermore, 72 Balb/c nude mice with breast cancer were randomly assigned to three groups with different dosage of CTX (control, 100mg/kg, 200mg/kg), the alterations of serum AMH and ovary follicles were recorded and analyzed. Results Chemotherapy induced amenorrhea was associated with pre-chemo AMH level, E2 level and FSH level (P 0.05). In breast cancer patients received chemotherapy, the serum AMH did not differ significantly between pre- and post- chemotherapy in patients younger than 35 years old (P>0.05), while dramatic decline was detected in patients over 35 years old (P