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Dietary lignan intakes in relation to survival among women with breast cancer: the Western New York Exposures and Breast Cancer (WEB) Study

  • Epidemiology
  • Published:
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Abstract

Dietary lignan intakes have been associated with reduced breast cancer risks; however, no previous studies have investigated whether lignan intake might be associated with breast cancer survival. We examined the association of dietary lignan intakes with survival in 1122 women with primary, incident, histologically confirmed breast cancer identified between 1996 and 2001, and with vital status determined through December 31, 2006. Diet in the 12–24 months before diagnosis was assessed with an extensive food frequency questionnaire, and potential confounders assessed from an extensive epidemiologic interview and abstracted clinical data. Lignan intake was calculated using published food composition data. Hazard ratios (HR), and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for dietary lignan intakes with all cause, and breast cancer mortality were estimated using Cox proportional hazards adjusting for age, education, race, total energy intake, tumor stage, and body mass index. Of the 1122 women with complete dietary data, 160 had died by the end of follow-up. Among postmenopausal women only, those in the highest versus lowest quartile of lignan intakes had a statistically significant reduction in the risk of all cause mortality (HR 0.49, 95% CI 0.26–0.91) and a significantly reduced risk of breast cancer mortality (HR 0.29, 95% CI 0.11–0.76). Higher intakes of dried beans (HR 0.61, 95% CI 0.36–1.03), but not fruits, vegetables, or grains, were also weakly associated with overall mortality. In summary, our results suggest that higher lignan intakes may be associated with improved survival among postmenopausal women with breast cancer.

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Abbreviations

BMI:

Body mass index

CI:

Confidence interval

ER:

Estrogen receptor

FFQ:

Food frequency questionnaire

HR:

Hazard ratio

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Acknowledgments

Supported in part by grants DAMD17-96-1-6202US from the Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, and R01CA92040 from the NIH.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Cancer Prevention and Control, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Elm and Carlton Streets, Buffalo, NY, 14263, USA

    Susan E. McCann, Christine B. Ambrosone, Hsin-Fang Li & Christina Kasprzak

  2. Department of Nutritional Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada

    Lilian U. Thompson

  3. Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, 14214, USA

    Jing Nie, Joan Dorn & Jo L. Freudenheim

  4. University of Nevada Health Sciences System, Las Vegas, NV, 89103, USA

    Maurizio Trevisan

  5. Lombardi Cancer Center, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, 20007, USA

    Peter G. Shields

  6. Department of Surgery, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY, 14263, USA

    Stephen B. Edge

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  1. Susan E. McCann
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  2. Lilian U. Thompson
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  3. Jing Nie
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  4. Joan Dorn
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Correspondence to Susan E. McCann.

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McCann, S.E., Thompson, L.U., Nie, J. et al. Dietary lignan intakes in relation to survival among women with breast cancer: the Western New York Exposures and Breast Cancer (WEB) Study. Breast Cancer Res Treat 122, 229–235 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10549-009-0681-x

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