Lifestyle and Reproductive Factors Associated with Breast Cancer among Kenyan Females Screened for Breast Cancer at Thika Level 5 Hospital

Kerubo Diana Rose Memba, Peter Mwaniki, Lawrence Muthami

Abstract: Breast cancer is a leading female malignancy and a major health concern in the world today. In Kenya, breast cancer is a public health problem because it is on the rise with an increase in incidence and mortality rates. A cross-sectional study using structured questionnaire was conducted at Thika Level 5 Hospital in Thika on a sample of 167 women aged 18 years and above, attending the radiology department for breast cancer screening. From the findings, fat intake, fruits and vegetables, weight, physical activity, alcohol consumption, passive tobacco smoking, breastfeeding and hormonal contraceptive use were significant. Multiple binary logistic regression indicated that women with BMI greater than 28 had a 53.43 fold risk of testing positive for breast cancer (13.2%, p-value 0.00) compared to those with BMI below 22. Those women in the study who had breastfed for 2 to 4 years had a 0.17 fold risk (5.4%, p-value 0.001) and women who had breastfed for more than 4 years had a 0.05 fold risk (3.6%, p-value 0.00) of testing positive for breast cancer, indicating a protection from breast cancer. Women who spent 3-5 hours daily engaging in any physical activity had 0.02 (95% CI:0.02 (0.004-0.153)) lower odds of testing positive for breast cancer compared to those who spent 1-3 hours daily. Women who passively smoked for more than 3 hours daily had a 15.66 fold risk (95% CI: (4.807-50.983) of testing positive for breast cancer compared to those who did not passively smoke. The results from this study support a role of lifestyle behavior as one of the main predisposing factors to developing aggressive forms of breast cancer in the African population. These findings will be useful to policy makers who guide the breast cancer prevention and control programs in the management of the rise in cancer incidence and increase awareness on the risks of breast cancer.

Keywords: Breast Cancer, Lifestyle factors, Reproductive factors, Diet, Physical activity