Study: Younger Women With High BMI at Greater Risk From Breast Cancer

Younger women whose body mass index is in the highest quartile may be more than twice as likely to die of breast cancer within five years of diagnosis, according to researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.

Researchers studied 1,177 women under age 45 who had invasive ductal breast cancer. Their BMI was recorded as of one year prior to cancer diagnosis.

Women in the top quartile of BMI measurement had larger tumors of higher histologic grade and higher mitotic cell count than women in the lower quartiles of BMI, according to the study published in Cancer.

Women with a higher BMI were also more likely to have estrogen receptor negative tumors, the researchers said.

Researchers speculate that tumor growth rate may be affected by metabolic pathways that are related to insulin resistance, insulin-like growth factors, and leptin.

Researchers concluded that body mass index may be a key clinical prognostic factor that should be considered in the process of working up breast cancer cases and recommended that it be considered in the treatment plan.

Other Sources: Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Cancer