Diet and the Risk of Breast Cancer in Korean Women - A Case-Control Study

Abstract

Purpose: A case-control study was conducted to evaluate the association between diet and breast cancer in Korean women. Methods: The eligible subjects consisted of a series of histologically confirmed incident breast cancer patients (n= 1063) and non-cancer controls (n=1002) admitted to the departments of surgery at four teaching hospitals located in Seoul, Korea (Seoul National University Hospital, Borame Hospital, Samsung Medical Canter, and Asan medical Center) between 1995 and 2002, from whom blood samples were available. After excluding subjects with a previous history of cancer, hysterectomy or oophorectomy, the final study population consisted of 819 cases and 713 controls. The demographic characteristics and other information were collected by interviewed questionnaire. Dietary information obtained by trained interviewer using food frequency questionnaires. Results: Women educated more than 12 years (OR=1.9, 95% CI: 1.4∼2.7), with a higher body mass index (BMI) (OR= 1.4, 95% CI: 1.1∼2.0) and a positive family history of breast