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Physical activity during adolescence and young adulthood and the risk of breast cancer in BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers

  • Epidemiology
  • Published:
Breast Cancer Research and Treatment Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Background

Physical activity is inversely associated with the risk of breast cancer among women in the general population. It is not clear whether or not physical activity is associated with the risk of BRCA-associated breast cancer.

Methods

We conducted a case–control study of 443 matched pairs of BRCA mutation carriers to evaluate the association between physical activity and breast cancer risk. Moderate and vigorous physical activities at ages 12–13, ages 14–17, ages 18–22, ages 23–29 and ages 30–34 were determined using the Nurses’ Health Study II Physical Activity Questionnaire. We estimated mean metabolic equivalent task hours/week for moderate, vigorous and total physical activities overall (ages 12–34), during adolescence (ages 12–17) and during early adulthood (ages 18–34). Logistic regression analysis was used to estimate the odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for total, moderate and strenuous recreational physical activities and breast cancer risk, by menopausal status.

Results

Overall, there was no significant association between total physical activity and subsequent breast cancer risk (ORQ4 vs. Q1 = 1.01, 95% CI 0.69–1.47; P-trend = 0.72). Moderate physical activity between ages 12–17 was associated with a 38% decreased risk of premenopausal breast cancer (ORQ4 vs. Q1 = 0.62; 95% CI 0.40–0.96; P-trend = 0.01). We found no association between exercise and breast cancer diagnosed after menopause.

Conclusions

These findings suggest that early-life physical activity is associated with a reduced risk of premenopausal breast cancer among BRCA mutation carriers.

Impact

Future prospective analyses, complemented by mechanistic evidence, are warranted in this high-risk population.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to acknowledge the study staff, students and volunteers including Shana Kim, Farah Shoukat, Ellen MacDougall, Zoella Pasta, Nida Mian, Jennifer Ng, Sarah Chin, Hamida Begum, Harmeet Chaudhary, Asrafi Azmi, Shahana Nargis, Clotilde Ngwa, Mai Abdelhadi, Saiveena Penikalapati, Laavanya Somasundaram and Hannah Horvath who helped with the data collection and data entry.

Funding

Joanne Kotsopoulos is the recipient of a Cancer Care Ontario Research Chair in Population Studies and a Canadian Cancer Society Career Development Award in Prevention. Steven A. Narod is the recipient of a Tier I Canada Research Chair. This study was supported by a Canadian Cancer Society Research Institute Grant (703058). This work was supported by revenue from Nebraska’s excise tax on cigarettes awarded to Creighton University by the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the State of Nebraska or the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services. Funding was also received from the Liz’s Legacy fund through Kicks for a Cure. Henry Lynch’s work is partially funded through the Charles F. and Mary C. Heider Chair in Cancer Research, which he holds at Creighton University.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Gynecology and Center for Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer, University Hospital rechts der Isar, Technical University of Munich (TUM), Munich, Germany

    Jacqueline Lammert & Marion Kiechle

  2. International Hereditary Cancer Center, Department of Genetics and Pathology, Pomeranian Medical University, Szczecin, Poland

    Jan Lubinski, Jacek Gronwald & Tomasz Huzarski

  3. Division of Gynecologic Oncology, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Susan Armel

  4. Toronto-Sunnybrook Regional Cancer Center, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Andrea Eisen

  5. North York General Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Wendy S. Meschino

  6. Creighton’s Hereditary Cancer Center, Creighton University School of Medicine, Omaha, NE, USA

    Henry T. Lynch & Carrie Snyder

  7. Cleveland Clinic, Genomic Medicine Institute and Center for Personalized Genetic Healthcare, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Charis Eng

  8. Department of Medicine, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

    Olufunmilayo I. Olopade

  9. Langone Health and Department of Population Health, NYU School of Medicine, Perlmutter Cancer Center, New York University (NYU), New York, NY, USA

    Ophira Ginsburg

  10. Program in Cancer Genetics, Department of Oncology and Human Genetics, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada

    William D. Foulkes

  11. Division of Medical Oncology and Hematology, Department of Medicine, Mount Sinai Hospital and The Princess Margaret Cancer Center, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Christine Elser

  12. Cancer Genetics Risk Assessment Program, St. Vincent Health, Indianapolis, IN, USA

    Stephanie A. Cohen

  13. Women’s College Research Institute, Women’s College Hospital, 76 Grenville St., 6th Floor, Toronto, ON, M5S 1B2, Canada

    Steven A. Narod & Joanne Kotsopoulos

  14. Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Steven A. Narod & Joanne Kotsopoulos

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  1. Jacqueline Lammert
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  2. Jan Lubinski
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Correspondence to Joanne Kotsopoulos.

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Lammert, J., Lubinski, J., Gronwald, J. et al. Physical activity during adolescence and young adulthood and the risk of breast cancer in BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers. Breast Cancer Res Treat 169, 561–571 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10549-018-4694-1

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