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Childhood body mass index and adult mammographic density measures that predict breast cancer risk

  • Epidemiology
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Abstract

The aim of the present study is to determine if body mass index (BMI) during childhood is associated with the breast cancer risk factor ‘adult mammographic density adjusted for age and BMI’. In 1968, the Tasmanian Longitudinal Health Study studied every Tasmanian school child born in 1961. We obtained measured heights and weights from annual school medical records across ages 7–15 years and imputed missing values. Between 2009 and 2012, we administered to 490 women a questionnaire that asked current height and weight and digitised at least one mammogram per woman. Absolute and percent mammographic densities were measured using the computer-assisted method CUMULUS. We used linear regression and adjusted for age at interview and log current BMI. The mammographic density measures were negatively associated: with log BMI at each age from 7 to 15 years (all p < 0.05); with the average of standardised log BMIs across ages 7–15 years (p < 0.0005); and more strongly with standardised log BMI measures closer to age 15 years (p < 0.03). Childhood BMI measures explained 7 and 10 % of the variance in absolute and percent mammographic densities, respectively, and 25 and 20 % of the association between current BMI and absolute and percent mammographic densities, respectively. Associations were not altered by adjustment for age at menarche. There is a negative association between BMI in late childhood and the adult mammographic density measures that predict breast cancer risk. This could explain, at least in part, why BMI in adolescence is negatively associated with breast cancer risk.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the participants in the TAHS, the study interviewers and the Tasmanian State Archives for providing access to school medical records.

Funding

This study was funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, The University of Melbourne, Level 3, 207 Bouverie Street, Carlton, 3053, VIC, Australia

    John L. Hopper, Tuong L. Nguyen, Kelly Aujard, Melanie C. Matheson, John A. Burgess, Gillian S. Dite, Minh Bui, Christopher Evans, Enes Makalic, Daniel F. Schmidt, Mark A. Jenkins, Graham G. Giles, Shyamali C. Dharmage & Carmel Apicella

  2. Seoul Department of Epidemiology and Institute of Health and Environment, School of Public Health, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea

    John L. Hopper

  3. The Curtin UWA Centre for Genetic Origins of Health and Disease, Curtin University and The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia

    Jennifer Stone

  4. Department of Epidemiology & Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

    Michael J. Abramson

  5. NHMRC Centre for Research Excellence for Chronic Respiratory Disease, University of Tasmania, Hobart, TAS, Australia

    E. Haydn Walters

  6. Department of Health & Human Services, BreastScreen Tasmania, Level 4 25 Argyle St., Hobart, TAS, Australia

    Gail Ward

  7. Cancer Epidemiology Centre, Cancer Council Victoria, St Kilda, VIC, Australia

    Graham G. Giles

Authors
  1. John L. Hopper
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  2. Tuong L. Nguyen
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  3. Jennifer Stone
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  4. Kelly Aujard
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  5. Melanie C. Matheson
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  6. Michael J. Abramson
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  7. John A. Burgess
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  8. E. Haydn Walters
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  9. Gillian S. Dite
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  10. Minh Bui
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  11. Christopher Evans
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  12. Enes Makalic
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  13. Daniel F. Schmidt
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  14. Gail Ward
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  15. Mark A. Jenkins
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  16. Graham G. Giles
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  17. Shyamali C. Dharmage
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  18. Carmel Apicella
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to John L. Hopper.

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Hopper, J.L., Nguyen, T.L., Stone, J. et al. Childhood body mass index and adult mammographic density measures that predict breast cancer risk. Breast Cancer Res Treat 156, 163–170 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10549-016-3719-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10549-016-3719-x

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