6533b851fe1ef96bd12a9725

RESEARCH PRODUCT

The Morphology of Hormone Induced Structural Changes in the Female Breast

subject

description

Many morphological, physiological, and biochemical investigations have contributed to the classification of the endocrine regulatory mechanisms responsible for development and function of the mammary gland. These studies received their crucial impetus when the synthesis of the sex hormones had been achieved and from their experimental use. The history of the use of these drugs is thus also the history of the concept of control of the mammary gland by hormones. The individual factors and combinations of factors responsible for the normal growth of the glandular structure of the mammary gland, for its secretory function, and for its pathomorphology have been elucidated by systematic studies. The laws that have been discovered have led to a classification of reaction types and have made it possible for experimental observations to be compared with the responses of the human mammary gland. Current concepts of quantitative morphology and endocrinology have broadened our understanding of the mechanisms of the action of sex hormones on the mammary gland. Generally valid concepts of hormonal regulation of growth and metabolism have been derived from this.