Post-diagnosis weight gain and breast cancer recurrence in women with early stage breast cancer

Abstract

PURPOSE: To examine whether weight gain after diagnosis of breast cancer affects the risk of breast cancer recurrence.PATIENT AND METHODS: Patients included 3215 women diagnosed with early stage breast cancer (Stage I > 1 cm., II, and IIIA) who were enrolled either in an observational cohort of breast cancer survivors or were part of the comparison group of a dietary intervention trial to prevent breast cancer recurrence. We computed weight change from 1 yr prior to diagnosis to study enrollment. Delayed entry Cox proportional hazards models were used to evaluate associations of categories of weight change with time to recurrence, controlling for known prognostic factors.RESULTS: Neither moderate (5-10%) nor large (>10%) weight gain (HR 0.8, 95%CI, 0.6 to 1.1; HR 0.9, 95% CI, 0.7 to 1.2, respectively) after breast cancer diagnosis was associated with an increased risk of breast cancer recurrence in the early years post diagnosis (median time of 73.7 months from diagnosis). CONCLUSION: Our research provides evidence that weight gain commonly seen in the first several years following a breast cancer diagnosis does not increase a woman's risk for breast cancer recurrence in the first 5-7 years post diagnosis. However, this research does not address the effects of weight gain on overall survival or on the risk of other new cancers, other prognostic outcomes of concern to the breast cancer survivor.

Lifestyle changes and breast cancer prognosis: a review

“…These findings were especially apparent in women who never smoked, among women with earlier stage disease or those who were normal weight before diagnosis [33]. In contrast, a collaborative effort between the LACE study and the WHEL study, did not observe an association between post-diagnosis weight gain and recurrence risk in the first 5-7 years postdiagnosis [34].…”

Weight Gain Prior to Diagnosis and Survival from Breast Cancer

“…Only a few studies have addressed weight change after breast cancer diagnosis, and results have been inconsistent (25,(36)(37)(38). Whereas the Nurses' Health Study (n = 5,204) reported an increased risk of breast cancer death with increasing weight gain after breast cancer diagnosis (25), other studies have failed to find an association between postdiagnostic weight gain and prognosis (38,39). Thus, it is not clear whether weight gain after diagnosis influences mortality.…”

Perceptions of Dutch health care professionals on weight gain during chemotherapy in women with breast cancer

“…Several studies reported that chemotherapy is associated with weight gain [7][8][9][10][11]. Weight gain may have long-term consequences because it can lead to a higher risk of developing cardiovascular disease, diabetes and disease recurrence in survivors of breast cancer [12][13][14][15], and at least half of the patients experience unhappiness concerning their body changes and altered physical appearance, which negatively affected their quality of life [16][17][18][19].…”