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Body size across the life course and risk of premenopausal and postmenopausal breast cancer in Black women, the Carolina Breast Cancer Study, 1993–2001

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Abstract

Background

It is believed that greater adiposity is associated with reduced risk of breast cancer in premenopausal but increased risk in postmenopausal women. However, few studies have evaluated these relationships among Black women or examined anthropometric measures other than near-diagnosis body mass index (BMI).

Purpose

This study investigated associations between measures of body size across the life course and breast cancer risk among Black and White women living in the US South.

Methods

We used data from the Carolina Breast Cancer Study, a population-based case–control study of invasive breast cancer in North Carolina women aged 20–74 years. We assessed nine body size variables, including age 10 relative weight; age 18 BMI; adult weight gain; “reference” BMI 1 year before interview; and post-diagnosis measured BMI and abdominal obesity measures.

Results

Among premenopausal Whites, heavier childhood relative weight was associated with decreased cancer risk [odds ratio (OR) 0.48 95 % confidence interval 0.33–0.70]. Among premenopausal Blacks, greater adult waist circumference and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) were associated with increased risk [waist OR 1.40 (1.00–1.97) and high tertile WHR OR 2.03 (1.29–3.19)], with associations for WHR in a similar direction in Whites. Among postmenopausal women, recalled body size was not associated with risk, except for increased risk associated with adult weight gain among White non-hormone therapy users. ER/PR status and hormone therapy use also modified other associations.

Discussion

In this population, greater adult BMI was not associated with increased breast cancer risk, but some measures of early-life body size and abdominal obesity were associated with risk.

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Acknowledgments

This research was funded in part by the University Cancer Research Fund of North Carolina and the National Cancer Institute Specialized Program of Research Excellence (SPORE) in Breast Cancer (NIH/NCI P50-CA58223). Dr. Robinson was supported by the National Cancer Institute (1K01CA172717-01). Dr. Troester was supported by the following grants from the National Institutes of Health: U01 ES019472; P30 ES010126; P30 DK056350; and P50 CA151135. This research was supported in part by a grant from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (P30ES010126). We are grateful to the Carolina Population Center (R24 HD050924) for general support.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Epidemiology, UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, CB #7435, McGavran-Greenberg, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599-7435, USA

    Whitney R. Robinson, Chiu Kit Tse, Andrew F. Olshan & Melissa A. Troester

  2. Carolina Population Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA

    Whitney R. Robinson

  3. UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, Chapel Hill, NC, USA

    Whitney R. Robinson, Andrew F. Olshan & Melissa A. Troester

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  1. Whitney R. Robinson
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Correspondence to Whitney R. Robinson.

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Robinson, W.R., Tse, C.K., Olshan, A.F. et al. Body size across the life course and risk of premenopausal and postmenopausal breast cancer in Black women, the Carolina Breast Cancer Study, 1993–2001. Cancer Causes Control 25, 1101–1117 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10552-014-0411-5

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