A Case-Control Study of Body Mass Index and Breast Cancer Risk in White and African-American Women
Open Access
- 1 June 2010
- journal article
- research article
- Published by American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention
- Vol. 19 (6), 1532-1544
- https://doi.org/10.1158/1055-9965.epi-10-0025
Abstract
Objective: Large body size has been associated with decreased risk of breast cancer in premenopausal women but with increased risk in postmenopausal women. Limited information is available about African-American women and differences by estrogen and progesterone receptor status. Methods: We analyzed data from the Women's Contraceptive and Reproductive Experiences Study among 3,997 white and African-American breast cancer case patients diagnosed in 1994 to 1998 and 4,041 control participants ages 35 to 64 years. We calculated multivariate odds ratios (OR) as measures of relative risk of breast cancer associated with self-reported body mass index (BMI) at age 18 and 5 years before diagnosis (recent BMI). Results: Risk tended to decrease with increasing BMI at age 18 years in all women [ORBMI ≥ 25 kg/m2 versus < 20 kg/m2 = 0.76; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.63-0.90; Ptrend = 0.005] and with recent BMI in premenopausal women (ORBMI ≥ 35 kg/m2 versus < 25 kg/m2 = 0.81; 95% CI, 0.61-1.06; Ptrend = 0.05), unmodified by race. Among postmenopausal white but not African-American women, there was an inverse relation between recent BMI and risk. High recent BMI was associated with increased risk of estrogen receptor– and progesterone receptor–positive tumors among postmenopausal African-American women (ORBMI ≥ 35 kg/m2 versus < 25 kg/m2 = 1.83; 95% CI, 1.08-3.09; Ptrend = 0.03). Conclusion: Among women at age 35 to 64 years, BMI at age 18 years is inversely associated with risk of breast cancer, but association with recent BMI varies by menopause status, race, and hormone receptor status. Impact: Our findings indicate that studies of BMI and breast cancer should consider breast cancer subtypes. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 19(6); 1532–44. ©2010 AACR.Keywords
Other Versions
This publication has 53 references indexed in Scilit:
- Body Size and Risk of Luminal, HER2-Overexpressing, and Triple-Negative Breast Cancer in Postmenopausal WomenCancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, 2008
- Lifestyle changes and breast cancer prognosis: a reviewBreast Cancer Research and Treatment, 2008
- Epidemiology of basal-like breast cancerBreast Cancer Research and Treatment, 2007
- Body size, weight change, fat distribution and breast cancer risk in Hispanic and non-Hispanic white womenBreast Cancer Research and Treatment, 2006
- Adult Weight Change and Risk of Postmenopausal Breast CancerJama-Journal Of The American Medical Association, 2006
- Long-term weight change and breast cancer risk: the European prospective investigation into cancer and nutrition (EPIC)British Journal of Cancer, 2005
- Body size and breast cancer risk: Findings from the European prospective investigation into cancer and nutrition (EPIC)International Journal of Cancer, 2004
- Hormone replacement therapy regimens and breast cancer riskObstetrics & Gynecology, 2002
- The Relationship of Body Mass Index to Reproductive Factors in Pre‐ and Postmenopausal African‐American Women With and Without Breast CancerObesity Research, 1996
- The role of oestrogens and progestagens in the epidemiology and prevention of breast cancerEuropean Journal of Cancer and Clinical Oncology, 1988