Lifecourse socioeconomic conditions and mammographic breast density in African American, Hispanic, and white women

A39

Breast cancer risk varies by race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status (SES), but it is unclear whether similar variations exist for mammographic breast density, an important risk factor for breast cancer. We examined the associations of childhood and adult socioeconomic status (SES) and race/ethnicity with mammographic density in 144 women without breast cancer, born between 1959 and 1963 (average age at mammography = 41.8 ± 2.1). The sample consisted of 40.3% Hispanic, 33.3% non-Hispanic African American and 26.4% non-Hispanic white women. Maternal education, family income and parental occupation were assessed around the time of participants’ birth and enrollment into the New York City site of the National Collaborative Perinatal Project. Data on participants’ own education, occupation, household income, race/ethnicity, and body mass index (BMI, kg/m²) were collected in a follow-up survey. We obtained participants’ most recent mammograms from the facilities where mammographic imaging was performed and evaluated the proportion of dense area (in percentage) using Cumulus software. We used multivariable linear regression model to investigate the above associations and to compare unadjusted and adjusted means of percent mammographic density across the SES and racial/ethnic groups. We found no statistically significant childhood or adult socioeconomic differences in percent mammographic density before and after adjustment for race/ethnicity and BMI. Similarly, percent mammographic density did not vary by race/ethnicity in the adjusted models. These data suggest that racial/ethnic and socioeconomic variations in breast cancer risk may not be reflected in mammographic breast density.