Role of Endorphins in Breast Cancer Pathogenesis and Recovery

Understanding the relationship between stress and breast cancer development is essential to preventing and alleviating the cancer. Recent research has shed light on the cognitive, physiological, cellular, and molecular underpinnings of how the endorphin pathway and stress pathway affect breast cancer. This chapter consists of two parts. Part 1 will discuss the role of endorphins in breast cancer development. This includes a discussion of three topics: (1) the neurophysiological effect of endorphins on breast tumor growth in vivo, along with further experiments that will deepen our knowledge of how β-endorphin affects breast cancer; (2) how both the opioid receptor and somatostatin receptor classes alter intracellular signaling in breast cancer cells; and (3) genetic alleles in the opioid signaling pathway that are correlated with increased breast cancer risk. Part 2 will discuss the role of endorphins in recovery from breast cancer. This includes a discussion of three topics: (1) the relationship between breast cancer diagnosis and depression; (2) the effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy in reducing stress in breast cancer patients; and (3) the effect of psychotherapy and exercise on preserving telomere length in breast cancer patients.