The risk of
breast cancer is significantly increased among obese women as the deleterious
adipokines can be over secreted and beneficial
adipokines can be hyposecreted. We aim to evaluate the association between
obesity-associated
adipokines and
breast cancer. We searched PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and Chinese Biomedical Literature (CBM) databases for studies reporting association of
obesity related
adipokines with
breast cancer published before Sept. 15, 2015. Initially, 26783 publications were identified, and later, 119 articles were selected for further meta-analysis. Out of these 119 studies, twenty-six studies had reported
adipokine levels among obese and non-obese healthy subjects and ninety-three studies had reported
adipokine levels among patients with
breast cancer. The subjects with BMI >25 kg/m2 had significantly lower
adiponectin levels and higher
leptin and
tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) levels than those with BMI <25 kg/m2. Decreased concentrations of
adiponectin, and increased concentrations of
leptin,
IL-6,
IL-8, TNF-α,
resistin and
visfatin were significantly associated with risk of
breast cancer.
Adipokine levels were strongly associated with
breast cancer among Asian women as compared to non-Asian women. Our results might explain the relationship of
obesity,
adipokine levels and risk of
breast cancer, especially in Asian women.