Aggressive Breast Cancer: Watch Your BMI

Ivanhoe Newswire

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(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- A womans height to weight ratio -- commonly known as her BMI (body mass index) -- could reflect more than her physical appearance. A new study reveals women with a high BMI are more likely to have a worse prognosis for locally advanced and inflammatory breast cancer than those who fall into the normal or underweight range.

This is the first study to highlight the value of BMI at the time of diagnosis as a prognostic indicator in women with aggressive disease and at a high risk of recurrence, senior author Massimo Cristofanilli, M.D. was quoted as saying.

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According to Dr. Christofanilli, locally advanced breast cancer (LABC) -- or cancer than has spread into surrounding tissue or lymph nodes -- account for five percent of breast cancer cases reported every ear. Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) is rare, accounting for one percent to five percent of all breast cancer cases in the United States, but is also extremely aggressive.

Study results showed 10-year survival rates of the normal or underweight women with LABC was about 57 percent and 44 percent for both overweight and obese women. The five-year survival rate of women with IBC was 45.3 percent for overweight women, 49 percent for obese women and 55.1 percent for normal or underweight women. Each of the women received similar treatments based on weight.

From a research standpoint, we really need to further look at the relationship between obesity and some endocrine factors that may explain why inflammatory breast cancer patients are more frequently obese, Dr. Christofanilli said. Our next step is to go back to the lab and start looking into those specific factors related to obesity in breast cancer. Insulin, estrogen levels and leptin are areas of immediate interest.

Dr. Christofanilli admits that dietary intervention would be difficult for women undergoing chemotherapy, but changes in lifestyle habits for overweight and obese patients after diagnosis are vital.

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SOURCE: Cancer Research, March 15, 2008

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