Testosterone promotes growth of a type of brain tumour in young boys

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25 March 2026 Testosterone promotes growth of a type of brain tumour in young boys A type of childhood brain tumour called ependymoma is more common in boys than in girls. The reason for this difference turns out to be sex hormones such as testosterone. By Najla Kfoury-Beaumont ORCID: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6693-2976 0 Najla Kfoury-Beaumont Najla Kfoury-Beaumont is in the Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California, San Diego, California 92037, USA. View author publications PubMed Google Scholar

Sex differences in the incidence and outcome of numerous diseases, including brain tumours, are evident regardless of age and demographics1–4. A type of childhood malignant brain tumour called posterior fossa type A (PFA) ependymoma has an average age of onset of around 3 years and is more prevalent in boys than in girls5,6. Boys are not only more likely to get the disease, but they also have a worse prognosis and significantly shorter overall survival time than do girls5,6. Writing in Nature, Zhang et al.7 reveal from studies of mice that potent steroid hormones called androgens, which drive the development of male reproductive organs and body changes at puberty (secondary sexual characteristics), have a key role in driving the male bias in both the incidence and poor outcome of PFA ependymoma. The authors report that inhibition of androgen activity led to a decrease in growth of this tumour type.

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-026-00638-1

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Competing Interests The author declares no competing interests.

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