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doI 10.11603/ijmmr.2413-6077.2022.2.13154

ANTHROPOMETRIC VARIABLES IN BREAST LESIONS OF WOMEN OF 
REPRODUCTIVE AGE IN UNIVERSITY OF PORT HARCOURT TEACHING 
HOSPITAL

*C. D. Orupabo, C. G. Odoya
RIVERS STATE UNIVERSITY, PORT HARCOURT, NIGERIA

Background. Benign breast diseases are a potential health concern to a large number of women. The incidence 
of cancer is increasing worldwide. A steady increase in incidence has been observed in most developed and 
developing counties. 

Objective. Thus, our study seeks to investigate the anthropometric variables implicated in breast lesions of 
women of reproductive age. 

Methods. This is a descriptive and prospective study with a random sampling method; the data was obtained 
from the Department of Surgery, Radiotherapy and Oncology Unit of University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital. 
A total number of 146 subjects (18-49 years) were involved into this study. A number of 90 were breast lump 
patients and 56 were breast cancer patients. 

Results. Data obtained was analysed with Microsoft Excel. Our results show no statistically significant difference 
(P> 0.05) in the body mass index (BMI) and waist-hip-ratio (WHR) of both the breast lump and breast cancer 
patients. This study supports the fact that high BMI is a predictive marker for breast lumps and cancer in women. 

Conclusion. The study has also identified that high BMI favours the incidence of breast lumps and 
breast cancers in women of reproductive age.

KEYWORDS: anthropometric variables; BMI; waist-hip-ratio; breast cancer; breast lump.

*Corresponding author: Dr. Clinton David Orupabo, Lecturer 
1, Faculty Examination Officer, Faculty of Basic Medical Sci-
ences, College of Medical Sciences, Rivers State University, Port 
Harcourt, PMB 5080, Nigeria. 
E-mail: clinton.orupabo@ust.edu.ng

International Journal of Medicine and Medical Research 
2022, Volume 8, Issue 2, p. 18-23
copyright © 2022, TNMU, All Rights Reserved

c. d. orupabo et al.

Introduction
Benign breast diseases are common 

throughout a woman’s lifetime, from early 
reproductive life to the postmenopausal part 
of life, making it a potential health concern to 
a large number of women. Malignant lesions 
on the other hand are cancerous in nature and 
a r e  c h a r a c t e r i z e d  b y  p r o g r e s s i v e  a n d 
uncontrolled growth. Breast cancer is one of 
the most common types of malignant diseases, 
affecting millions of women around the world, 
with a high rate of morbidity and mortality. The 
prevalence rate of breast cancer, particularly in 
Nigeria, accounts for 20% to 25% of tumours in 
women with an annual incidence of about 800 
to 1000 cases [1]. African breast cancer patients 
tend to present at a younger age, with a lesion 
characterized by large and palpable tumour, 
multiple nodal involvements, and have poorer 
clinical and pathological prognostic factors 
compared with Caucasian patients [2]. These 
documented characteristics are somewhat 

similar to that of African-Americans but are in 
contrast with those of non-Hispanic Whites in 
t h e  U S A ,  w h i c h  t h e re f o re  c a l l s  f o r  t h e 
consideration of genetic factors in the aetiology 
of breast cancer in general, and in people of 
African origin in particular [3, 4].

In 2017, an estimated 252,710 new cases of 
invasive breast cancer were diagnosed among 
women and 2,470 cases were diagnosed in men 
and thus approximately 40,610 women and 460 
men were expected to die from breast cancer 
in 2017 [5]. The incidence of cancer is increasing 
worldwide. A steady increase in incidence has 
b e e n  o b s e r v e d  i n  m o s t  d ev e l o p e d  a n d 
developing counties. Apart from incidence, 
cancer related deaths are also increasing. There 
were over 230,000 new cases of breast cancer 
each year in the United States as at 2015. Some 
studies had affirmed that the risk of breast 
cancer increase with age, and in the United 
States approximately one out of eight women 
will get breast cancer at some point in their lives 
[6, 7, 8]. Thus with 1.7 million new cases 
diagnosed in 2012, constituting 12% of all new 
cancer cases and 25% of all cancers in women, 
breast cancer remains the commonest site-



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iSSn 2413-6077. iJMMR 2022 Vol. 8 issue 2

specific malignancy affecting women and the 
most common cause of cancer death in women. 

In Nigeria, female breast cancer is recog-
nized as major cause of morbidity and mortality 
with incidence rate ranging from 36.3 to 
50.2/100,000 live birth [9]. More so, late pre-
sentation of patients at advanced stages when 
little or no benefit can be derived from any form 
of therapy is the hall mark of breast cancer. 
Reasons given include poverty, under-edu-
cation, lack of knowledge and poor access to 
care [10]. Indeed, the ratio of mortality to 
incidence in Africa is 0.73, compared to below 
0.23 in North America and 0.354 in Latin 
America and the Caribbean [11]. Risk factors 
associated with breast cancer development 
include non­modifiable ones such as female 
sex, increasing age, a history of breast cancer 
in close relatives especially in mothers and 
siblings. Non­modifiable ones include early 
menarche before the age of 14 years or 
menopause later than the age of 55 years. 
Other risks include overweight and obesity, 
prolonged use of hormone replacement 
therapy, oral contraceptives, tobacco use, 
alcohol intake, nulliparity or having first child 
after age 35. Thus, our study seeks to investigate 
the anthropometric variables implicated in 
breast lesions of women of reproductive age.

High body weight (measured in terms of 
body mass index, BMI) has been recognized as 
an important risk factor for breast cancer 
among postmenopausal women in many 
previous epidemiological studies [12, 13, 14, 
15]. After menopause, epidemiological evidence 
found a substantial positive association 
between BMI and breast cancer risk [16]. A 
meta-analysis showed that the substantial 
positive association between post-menopausal 
BMI and breast cancer risk was confined to 
hormonal factors [17]. Some studies have 
shown a decreased risk for premenopausal 
women [18, 19], while others have shown no 
association [20, 16]. Breast cancer has been 
documented in other studies as the most 
frequently occurring cancer in women of 
reproductive age [21]. 

Methods
This is a descriptive and prospective study 

with a random sampling method; the data was 
obtained from the Department of Surgery, 
Radiotherapy and Oncology Unit University of 
Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital. Demographic 
information such as age, body weight, height, 
waist circumference, hip circumference was 

obtained from the patients. A consent form was 
given to the patients prior to data collection. 
The population of this study includes breast 
lumps and breast cancer patients, the age 
range of 18 - 49 years old, of University of Port 
Harcourt Teaching Hospital, Rivers State, 
Nigeria. The participants voluntarily consented 
to the study which was conducted in compliance 
with the ethical standards. A total number of 
146 subjects were involved into the study; 90 
of them were breast lump patients and 56 were 
breast cancer patients. Data obtained was 
analysed with Microsoft Excel.

The following anthropometric variables 
were measured. 

I. Weight (kg): Weight is measured to the 
nearest 0.1 kg when the subject is standing and 
putting on light indoor clothes excluding shoes, 
belt and sweater using a weighing scale. Heavy 
jewellery if any present was removed and 
pockets emptied.

II. Height (cm): Standing height is the 
measurement of the maximum distance from 
the floor to the vertex, when the subject is 
facing forward. 

III. The BMI: It was calculated as the ratio 
of weight in kilogram by square of height in 
meters (m2). i.e.: BMI (kg/m2) = weight (kg)/
height (m2). It is a measure of body mass 
corrected for height which is used to assess the 
extent of weight deficit or excess. BMI also 
provides a practical indicator of adiposity and 
hence overweight or obesity.

IV. Waist circumference (cm): The tape 
is used to circle the waist (like a belt would 
circle the waist) at the natural waistline, which 
is midpoint between the lowest rib and the 
iliac crest. The subject is asked to stand erect 
while measurements are taken. The measu-
rement is taken at the midpoint between the 
lowest rib and the iliac crest. The measuring 
tape is placed perpendicular to the long axis 
of the body and horizontal to the floor, with 
sufficient tension to avoid slipping off but 
without compressing the skin. The measure-
ment is made at the end of a normal expiration 
to the nearest 0.1 cm

V. Hip circumference (cm): The subject 
stands erect, the weight is evenly distributed 
on both feet. The tape is placed at the maximum 
extension of the buttocks, horizontal to the 
floor, with sufficient tension to avoid slipping 
off. The tape is held a bit tighter but without 
compressing the buttocks. The zero end of the 
tape is held under the measurement value 
recorded to the nearest 0.1 cm.

c. d. orupabo et al.



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iSSn 2413-6077. iJMMR 2022 Vol. 8 issue 2

VI. W a i s t  h i p - r a t i o  ( W H R ) :  T h i s  i s 
calculated by dividing the waist measurement 
by the hip measurement, since the hips are the 
widest part of the buttocks. The formula is: WHR 
= waist circumference/hip circumference. 

Ethical approval
Ethical approval was obtained from the 

Research Ethics Committee of University of Port 
Harcourt Teaching Hospital with the number of 
UPTH/ADM/90/S.II//VOL.XI/1270. 

Informed consent was obtained from all 
respondents prior to data collection.

Results
The data in Table 1 shows that the mean 

BMI for age group (18-25) is 23.71, which is 
normal according to World Health Organization 
(WHO) classification.

Table 2 shows the anthropometric data for 
women with breast cancer who had the mean 
BMI of 26.89, 27.92, 26.85, and 28.62 for the 
various age groups studied. They therefore just 
like their counterparts with breast lumps are 
within the overweight category.

A T value of -0.88 means that there is some 
similarity between the BMI of those with breast 

lump and those with breast cancer; however, 
the T value shows some difference does exist. 
The negative T value shows that BMI values 
affect both the occurrence of lumps and that 
of cancer. The data shows that both patients 
with breast lumps and those with breast 
cancers all have high BMI: overweight. 

A P value of 0.38 (>0.05) shows that there is 
no statistical difference in the BMI of patients 
with breast lump and breast cancer. Thus, high 
BMI favours the occurrence of breast lumps 
and cancers in women of reproductive age 
(Table 3). 

A P value of 0.44 (> 0.05) shows that there 
is no statistical difference in the WHR of the 
patients with breast lump and breast cancer. 
However, those with breast cancer have a 
higher mean BMI and a higher mean WHR. 
Thus, BMI and WHR affects the incidence of 
breast cancer (Table 4).

Discussion
The results of this study showed that many 

of the participants involved were overweight. 
Also, for age groups (26-33), (34-41) and (41-42), 
their mean BMI were 25.69, 27.54 and 29.93, 

Table 1. Average anthropometric values of reproductive age women with breast lump

Age group
(years) N

Weight 
(kg)

Height 
(m) BMI X WC (cm) HC (cm) WHR X

18-25 15 63.93 1.64 23.71 Normal 69.09 84.16 0.80 Normal
26-33 26 67.42 1.62 25.69 Overweight 74.25 89.66 0.83 Normal
34-41 29 73.97 1.63 27.54 Overweight 79.18 97.91 0.81 Normal
42-49 20 78.85 1.63 29.93 Overweight 83.95 101.48 0.83 Normal

Notes. N – number of subjects, BMI – Body Mass Index, WC – waist circumference, HC – height circumference, WHR – waist-hip 
ratio. WHR (Women): <0.85 = Normal, >0.85 = Risk, X – classification.

Table 2. Average anthropometric values of reproductive age women with breast cancer

Age group
(years) N

Weight 
(kg)

Height 
(m) BMI X WC (cm) HC (cm) WHR X

18-25 2 68 1.59 26.89 Overweight 76.20 88.9 0.85 Risk
26-33 9 75.78 1.65 27.92 Overweight 83.82 101.04 0.84 Normal
34-41 25 72.24 1.64 26.85 Overweight 82.30 98.14 0.84 Normal
42-49 20 73.90 1.61 28.62 Overweight 84.20 105.54 0.80 Normal

Notes. N – number of subjects; BMI – body mass index; WC – waist circumference; HC – height circumference; WHR – waist-hip 
Ratio. WHR (Women): < 0.85 = normal, > 0.85 = risk, X – classification.

Table 3. Relationship between BMI of breast lump and breast cancer patients irrespective  
of age group

X N Percentage, % Mean±SD T value P value Inference
Breast lump 90 61.64 26.90±4.71 -0.88 0.38 Not significant

Breast cancer 56 38.35 37.66±5.28

Notes. X – classification; BMI – body mass index; SD – standard deviation.

c. d. orupabo et al.



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iSSn 2413-6077. iJMMR 2022 Vol. 8 issue 2

respectively, indicating that they were all in the 
overweight category. The mean waist hip ratio 
(WHR) was within the norm for all the women 
within this age group and classification. Our 
data shows the anthropometric data for women 
with breast cancer, who had the mean BMI of 
26.89, 27.92, 26.85, and 28.62 for the various 
age groups studied. They therefore just like 
their counterparts with breast lumps are within 
the overweight category. Their WHR were also 
within norm except for women within the age 
group 18-25 (Table 2). Again, both Tables 3 and 
4 shows that there is no statistically significant 
difference (P> 0.05) in the BMI and WHR of both 
the breast lump and breast cancer patients. 
Thus, the same variables implicated in the 
incidence of breast lumps also affected those 
of breast cancers. Our study therefore shows 
that the same anthropometric variables present 
in reproductive age women with breast lump 
were also found in those women with breast 
cancer. High BMI thus influences the incidence 
of breast lump and breast cancers propor-
tionately, as more than seventy percent of the 
subjects are within the overweight category. 
The WHR in the study was not a major factor to 
have influenced the lumps and cancers. About 
62% of the patients studied had breast lumps 
and about 38% had breast cancers. 

The findings were consistent with several 
other authors who reported that high BMI 
favours the occurrence of breast cancer in 
women, especially postmenopausal women [16, 
22], although our study covered women within 
the reproductive age. It is therefore apparent 
to affirm that high BMI favours the occurrence 
of both breast lumps and cancers in women. 
One most classical biological explanation is as 
a  r e s u l t  o f  a  f e m a l e  h o r m o n e - r e l a t e d 
mechanism. This is for the fact that adipose 
tissue may be a major source of oestrogens 
[14], which are critical mitogens for mammary 
epithelial cells [12, 15].

Despite the fact that our findings are 
associated high BMI with cancer among women 
of reproductive age, some other studies among 
premenopausal women are inconsistent and 

unclear [23]. Some studies have shown a 
decreased risk for breast cancer among 
premenopausal women [18, 19] while others 
have shown no association [16, 20]. Our study 
did not compare breast cancer risk between 
healthy women and cancer patients though, as 
we only focused on the prevalent anthropometric 
variables among women with breast lesions. 
Most probably this comparison would have 
shown the level of risk association between the 
two groups as argued by previous researchers. 
Nonetheless our study has identified the 
association of high BMI with breast lumps and 
cancers in women of reproductive age. 

Conclusion
This study supports the fact that high BMI 

can be used as a tool to predict breast cancer 
as well as breast lumps for women. More so the 
study has also identified that high BMI favours 
the incidence of breast lumps and breast 
cancers in women of reproductive age. The 
findings did not show any statistically significant 
correlation between high WHR and breast 
lumps and/or breast cancers as most of the 
subjects in this category were within the norm 
despite being diagnosed of a lump and/or 
cancer. 

Conflict of interest
Authors declare no conflict of interest.
Funding
The research was funded by the authors.
Acknowledgements
We the most sincerely appreciate the staff 

and Matrons of the Surgical and Oncology 
Outpatient Clinic of the University of Port 
Harcourt Teaching Hospital for the support and 
cooperation which enabled us to obtain the 
data needed. Again, we thank the hospital 
management and Ethics Review Committee for 
granting the approval for the study.

Author’s contributions
Clinton David Orupabo – conceptualization, 

methodology, formal analysis, writing – re-
viewing and editing; Chelsea Odoya George – 
investigation, data curation, writing – original 
draft.

Table 4. Relationship between the waist-hip ratio of breast lump and breast cancer patients 
irrespective of age group

X N Percentage, % Mean±SD T value P value Inference
Breast lump 90 61.64 0.82±0.06 -0.77 0.44 Not significant

Breast cancer 56 38.35 0.83±0.07

Notes. X – classification, WHR – waist-hip ratio, SD – standard deviation.

c. d. orupabo et al.



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iSSn 2413-6077. iJMMR 2022 Vol. 8 issue 2

АНТРОПОМЕТРИЧНІ ПАРАМЕТРИ УРАЖЕНЬ МОЛОЧНОЇ ЗАЛОЗИ У ЖІНОК 
РЕПРОДУКТИВНОГО ВІКУ В УНІВЕРСИТЕТСЬКІЙ ЛІКАРНІ ПОРТ-ХАРКОРТ 

C. D. Orupabo, C. G. Odoya
RIVERS STATE UNIVERSITY, PORT HARCOURT, NIGERIA.

Вступ. Зростання частоти та поширеності доброякісних захворювань молочної залози становить 
потенційну загрозу для значної кількості жінок. Ця тенденція спостерігається в більшості розвинутих 
країн і країнах, що розвиваються.

Мета. Наше дослідження було спрямоване на дослідження антропометричних змінних уражень 
молочних залоз у жінок репродуктивного віку.

Методи. Проведене описове проспективне дослідження методом випадкової вибірки, дані були 
отримані з відділення хірургії, променевої терапії та онкології університетської лікарні Порт-Харкорта. 
Усього в цьому дослідженні було залучено 146 пацієнток (18-49 років). З них 90 були пацієнтами з 
ущільненням грудей і 56 – з раком молочної залози.

Результати. Статистична обробка даних зроблена за допомогою Microsoft Excel. Аналіз даних не 
виявив статистично значущої різниці (P> 0,05) між індексом маси тіла (ІМТ) та показниками 
співвідношення талії і стегон (WHR) як у пацієнтів із доброякісними новоутворами молочної залози, 
так і у пацієнтів з раком молочної залози. Однак, отримані нами дані вказують на те, що високий ІМТ 
є прогностичним маркером утворення і розвитку доброякісних і злоякісних захворювань молочної 
залози.  

Висновки. Високий індекс маси тіла є сприятливим фактором виникнення доброякісних та 
злоякісних захворювань молочної залози у жінок репродуктивного віку.

КЛЮЧОВІ СЛОВА: Антропометричні змінні; індекс маси тілі (ІМТ); Співвідношення 
талії та стегон; Рак молочної залози; Доброякісні захворювання молочної залози.

Information about the authors 
Clinton David Orupabo – Lecturer 1, Faculty Examination Officer, Faculty of Basic Medical Sciences, 

College of Medical Sciences, Rivers State University, Port Harcourt, Nigeria.
https://orcid.org/0000 0002 4784 4273, e­mail: clinton.orupabo@ust.edu.ng
Chelsea Odoya George – Graduate assistant, Department of Human Anatomy, Faculty of Basic Medical 

Sciences, Rivers State University, Port Harcourt, Nigeria.
e­mail: odoya.chelsea.george@gmail.com

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https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1020239211145

Received 30 August 2022; revised 28 October 2022; 
accepted 17 November 2022..

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