Breast cancer and risk factors in an African population: a case referent study

Numerous studies have investigated different aspects of breast cancer including the known risk factors in the Western world. In sub-Saharan Africa breast cancer in women despite being a public health problem has not received attention from national health providers. This case-referent study investigated the association between a number of risk factors and breast cancer in Tanzania. There was a strong evidence of breast cancer risk increasing with parity chi 2 = 10.6; p = 0.001. However lactation did not show a significant protective effect against breast cancer (OR = 0.6, p = 0.5). Other factors investigated included age at menarche, age at first sex, marital status, age at menopause and duration of menstruation. Statistical analysis revealed that these factors were not significantly associated with breast cancer in these Tanzanian women. The influence of these results are discussed in terms of possible intervention strategies.