The association of alcohol consumption with mammographic density in a multiethnic urban population.

Zoe Quandt,Diane Reynolds,Jasmine A Mcdonald,Mary Beth Terry,Julie D Flom,Parisa Tehranifar

doi:10.1186/s12885-015-1094-3

Zoe Quandt, Diane Reynolds + Show 4 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s12885-015-1094-3

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Abstract

BackgroundAlcohol consumption is associated with higher breast cancer risk. While studies suggest a modest association between alcohol intake and mammographic density, few studies have examined the association in racial/ethnic minority populations.MethodsWe assessed dense breast area and total breast area from digitized film mammograms in an urban cohort of African American (42%), African Caribbean (22%), white (22%), and Hispanic Caribbean (9%) women (n = 189, ages 40-61). We examined the association between alcohol intake and mammographic density (percent density and dense area). We used linear regression to examine mean differences in mammographic density across alcohol intake categories. We considered confounding by age, body mass index (BMI), hormone contraceptive use, family history of breast cancer, menopausal status, smoking status, nativity, race/ethnicity, age at first birth, and parity.ResultsFifty percent currently consumed alcohol. Women who consumed >7 servings/week of alcohol, but not those consuming ≤7 servings/week, had higher percent density compared to nondrinkers after full adjustments (servings/week >7 β = 8.2, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) 1.8, 14.6; ≤7 β = -0.5, 95% CI -3.7, 2.8). There was a positive association between high alcohol intake and dense area after full adjustments (servings/week >7 β = 5.8, 95% CI -2.7, 14.2; ≤7 β = -0.1, 95% CI -4.4, 4.2). We did not observe race/ethnicity modification of the association between alcohol intake and percent density. In women with a BMI of <25 kg/m2, drinkers consuming >7 servings/week of alcohol had a 17% increase in percent density compared to nondrinkers (95% CI 5.4, 29.0) and there was no association in women with a BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2 (BMI ≥ 25-30 kg/m2 > 7 β = 5.1, 95% CI -8.5, 18.7 and BMI > 30 kg/m2 > 7 β = 0.5, 95% CI -6.5, 7.5) after adjusting for age and BMI (continuous).ConclusionIn a racially/ethnically diverse cohort, women who consumed >7 servings/week of alcohol, especially those with a BMI < 25 kg/m2, had higher percent density.

Highlights

Alcohol consumption is associated with higher breast cancer risk
There were no differences by race/ethnicity for percent density or dense area but white women had lower non-dense area compared to African American, African Caribbean, and Hispanic Caribbean women (P
We found women with a body mass index (BMI) < 25 kg/m2 may be at greater risk for higher mammographic density associated with alcohol intake

Summary

Introduction

While studies suggest a modest association between alcohol intake and mammographic density, few studies have examined the association in racial/ethnic minority populations. With few exceptions [5,6,7], the majority of studies suggest a modest positive association between alcohol intake and mammographic density [8,9,10,11,12,13,14], in Quandt et al BMC Cancer (2015) 15:124 many studies the estimates have high imprecision [15,16,17,18,19,20]. The few studies that have examined alcohol intake and mammographic density in racially and ethnically diverse cohorts have not reported major racial/ethnic differences in the association [5,7,8,17]. Alcohol is a carcinogen with biologic activity that has direct and indirect effects on breast tissue [21,24,25]

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