The association between adiposity indices and the odds of breast cancer based on findings from a case control study

Adiposity is a major risk factor for the development of cancers, such as breast cancer(BC) in adults. However, the role of central adiposity or general obesity as primary predictors of BC occurrence and progression is not well-established. Therefore, the current study aimed to assess the association between various adiposity indices, including a body shape index(ABSI), abdominal volume index(AVI), body roundness index(BRI), conicity index(CI), body adiposity index(BAI), reciprocal ponderal index(RPI), and waist to height^0.5 ratio(WHt^0.5R) as surrogates for predicting the odds of BC in adult women. This case-control study was conducted at Shohada and Imam Hossain hospitals in Tehran and included 134 newly diagnosed BC cases and 267 controls. Anthropometric variables, including weight, height, and waist circumference were measured using standard methods, and various adiposity indices were calculated accordingly. The odds ratios(ORs) with 95% confidence intervals(CIs) for BC were reported across tertiles of adiposity indices using multivariable logistic regression. Participants in the highest tertile of BRI(OR:2.07;95% CI:1.04-4.12), BAI(OR:2.06;95% CI:1.05-4.03), and WHt^0.5R(OR:1.81;95% CI:1.01-3.55) had significantly higher odds of BC compared to those in the lowest tertile(P < 0.05). Additionally, each SD increase in RPI was associated with lower odds of BC(OR:0.77;95% CI:0.61-0.98,P = 0.034). However, no significant associations were observed for CI, AVI, and ABSI with the odds of BC. Our results suggest that WHtR, BRI, BAI, and WHt^0.5R may be more effective predictors of BC odds among the evaluated adiposity indices.