Estudo da prevalência dos fatores de risco do câncer de mama, numa população de funcionárias da MEAC e da Universidade Federal do Ceará

Abstract

A group of 425 female staff from the school maternity hospital Assis Chateaubriand (Federal University of Ceará, Brazil), of varied ethnicity and socioeconomic status, were given a questionnaire containing 30 variables and subjected to weight, height, waist and hip circumference measurements in order to determine the prevalence of a number of risk factors for breast cancer, quantify the most prevalent risk factors, define high-risk groups and suggest intervention measures for primary prevention. All subjects had their waist/hip ratio, body mass index (BMI) and Gail index calculated. Within the risk factors surveyed, 222 (52.2%) subjects had a BMI of 25 or more, 391 (92.1%) presented a waist/hip ratio above 0.8, and 314 (73.1%) were found to be sedentary. The following subgroups displayed the highest risk, demanding specific follow-up measures: the 222 (52.2%) subjects with BMI≥25, 34 subjects (11.3%) who bore their first child after age 30, 34 subjects (11.3%) receiving hormone replacement therapy then or previously, 2 subjects (0.5%) diagnosed with breast cancer, and 15 subjects (20.8%) with first-degree relatives diagnosed with breast cancer. Intervention measures for primary breast cancer prevention in the highest-risk group would include dietary counseling and reeducation with periodical biometric measurements and on-the-job physical exercise programs.