Could Self-Reported Body Sizes Be an Alternative Tool for Assessing Breast Cancer Risk in Postmenopausal Women?

Beata Świątkowska, Marta Szkiela, Radosław Zajdel and Dorota Kaleta
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Beata Świątkowska: Department of Hygiene and Epidemiology, Medical University of Łódź, Żeligowskiego 7/9, 90-752 Łódź, Poland
Marta Szkiela: Department of Hygiene and Epidemiology, Medical University of Łódź, Żeligowskiego 7/9, 90-752 Łódź, Poland
Radosław Zajdel: Department of Computer Science in Economics, University of Łódź, POW 3/5, 90-255 Łódź, Poland
Dorota Kaleta: Department of Hygiene and Epidemiology, Medical University of Łódź, Żeligowskiego 7/9, 90-752 Łódź, Poland

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 3, 1-8

Abstract: Background: The use of self-reported body size as an alternative tool to estimate body weight for health risk assessment is not widely reported, especially in relation to breast cancer. Therefore, we examined the association between breast cancer and body-mass index (BMI) and the usefulness of pictograms. Methods: The case–control study was conducted among postmenopausal women from 2015 to 2019. The study involved 151 women with breast cancer and 67 control subjects. Data were collected by a self-reported detailed questionnaire. Results: An increased, 4.13-fold risk of breast cancer (OR = 4.13; 95% CI [1.69, 10.28]) was observed for women with BMI 25.0–29.9 kg/m 2 compared to women with normal BMI (18.5–24.9 kg/m 2 ), whereas the association in the case of obese women was not statistically significant. An increased risk of breast cancer was observed for pictogram scores 3–4 (OR = 8.95; 95% CI [3.22, 24.88]) and for the highest level of self-reported body size, pictograms ≥ 5 (OR = 3.20; 95% CI [1.13, 9.09]). Conclusions: The risk of breast cancer is associated with an increased BMI and visual overweigh and obesity. The results suggest that a self-reporting alternative tool can be used to assess the prevalence of overweight/obesity, particularly in situations where no other tools are available.

Keywords: overweight; obesity; BMI; breast cancer; modifiable risk factor; pictogram (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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