Title: Relationship between breast cancer risk factors and mammographic breast density in the Fernald Community Cohort.

Authors: Yaghjyan, L; Mahoney, M C; Succop, P; Wones, R; Buckholz, J; Pinney, S M

Published In Br J Cancer, (2012 Feb 28)

Abstract: We investigated associations of known breast cancer risk factors with breast density, a well-established and very strong predictor of breast cancer risk.This nested case-control study included breast cancer-free women, 265 with high and 860 with low breast density. Women were required to be 40-80 years old and should have a body mass index (BMI) <35 at the time of the index mammogram. Information on covariates was obtained from annual questionnaires.In the overall analysis, breast density was inversely associated with BMI at mammogram (P for trend<0.001), and parity (P for trend=0.02) and positively associated with alcohol consumption (ever vs never: odds ratio 2.0, 95% confidence interval 1.4-2.8). Alcohol consumption was positively associated with density, and the association was stronger in women with a family history of breast cancer (P<0.001) and in women with hormone replacement therapy (HRT) history (P<0.001). Parity was inversely associated with density in all subsets, except premenopausal women and women without a family history. The association of parity with density was stronger in women with HRT history (P<0.001).The associations of alcohol and parity with breast density appear to be in reverse direction, but stronger in women with a family history of breast cancer and women who ever used HRT.

PubMed ID: 22281662

MeSH Terms: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Alcohol Drinking; Body Mass Index; Breast Neoplasms/diagnostic imaging*; Breast/anatomy & histology*; Cohort Studies; Early Detection of Cancer; Female; Hormone Replacement Therapy; Humans; Mammography*; Middle Aged; Parity; Pregnancy; Risk Factors