Height Significantly Linked to Cancer Risk in Postmenopausal Women
An analysis of data from the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) of the height measurement at enrollment of 144,701 postmenopausal women and the risk of all cancers combined has found that 20,928 of the women had a diagnosis of one or more invasive cancers during a median follow-up of 12 years. The women’s height was significantly linked with the risk of all cancers (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.13; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.11–1.16), as well as with cancers of the thyroid, rectum, kidney, endometrium, colorectum, colon, ovary, and breast, and with multiple myeloma and melanoma (range of HRs: 1.13 for breast cancer to 1.29 for multiple myeloma and thyroid cancer). The study was published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention.
The women, representing all major racial/ethnic groups, were between the ages of 50 and 79, and enrolled in the study between 1993 and 1998. At the time of enrollment, the women were asked questions about their medical and reproductive history, diet, and lifestyle, including alcohol consumption, smoking habits, and level of physical activity. Height and weight measurements were recorded.
The researchers found that for every 10-cm increase in height, there was a 13% increase in risk of developing any cancer. Among specific types of cancers, there was a 13% to 17% increase in the risk of getting melanoma and cancers of the breast, ovary, endometrium, and colon, and a 23% to 29% increase in the risk of developing cancers of the kidney, rectum, thyroid, and blood.
Height May Be a Cause of Malignant Transformation
“We were surprised at the number of cancer sites that were positively associated with height,” Geoffrey Kabat, PhD, Senior Epidemiologist in the Department of Epidemiology and Population Health at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University, and lead author of the study, said in a statement. “In this data set, more cancers are associated with height than were associated with body mass index. Ultimately, cancer is a result of processes having to do with growth, so it makes sense that hormones or other growth factors that influence height may also influence cancer risk.”
Height is not a modifiable risk factor and is determined both by genetics and by early life exposures and environmental circumstances. The study authors noted that, like nutrition, height should be considered as a marker that influences cancer risk rather than a risk for cancer itself.
“Of particular relevance are findings that adult height is associated with a higher energy intake in childhood and adolescence, higher intake of milk protein in premenarchic girls, and higher circulating levels of insulin-like growth factor (IGF-I),” wrote the authors. Higher levels of circulating IGF-I have been shown to promote cell proliferation and inhibit apoptosis and an increased risk of prostate, breast, and colorectal cancer. Because height is associated with greater organ size and skin surface area, more cells may be at risk of malignant transformation, according to the researchers.
Further studies examining the links between adult height and increased cancer risk are needed to identify the possible mechanisms, such as nutrition and diet, underlying the associations of height with specific cancers, concluded the researchers.
The authors reported no potential conflicts of interest.
The content in this post has not been reviewed by the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Inc. (ASCO®) and does not necessarily reflect the ideas and opinions of ASCO®.
