Anthropometric measures and incidence of obesity-related cancers in the HCHS/SOL Onco-SOL ancillary study.

Background: Obesity is highly prevalent among Hispanic/Latino adults and is an established risk factor for 13 cancers; however, studies focused on Hispanic/Latino adults are limited. We examined six anthropometric measures in association with incidence of obesity-related cancers (ORCs) among Hispanic/Latino adults, overall and by sex, age, and heritage.

Methods: We included 16,415 Hispanic/Latino adults from the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos. Baseline (2008-2011) anthropometric measures included body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, waist-to-height ratio, waist-to-hip ratio (WHp), fat mass index, and percent body fat. The incidence of 13 ORCs was ascertained through linkages with four state cancer registries (n = 330 incident ORC diagnosed over a mean follow-up of 10.7 years). Survey-weighted Cox models estimated covariate-adjusted hazard ratios (aHRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CIs) for the associations between each anthropometric measure and latent class analysis-derived groups and ORC risk.

Results: HRs were elevated among adults with the highest levels of anthropometric measures, and more so among women than among men. For example, a BMI ≥30 (vs < 25) kg/m2 was associated with aHR of 1.42 (95%CI = 0.88-2.30) overall, and aHRs of 2.22 (95%CI = 1.18-4.16) in women and 0.46 (95%CI = 0.20-1.02) in men. aHRs also varied by Hispanic/Latino heritage. For example, a one-standard deviation increase in BMI was associated with a 63% (HR = 1.63; 95%CI = 1.10-2.41) increase in ORC risk among South American adults, but not among Central American adults (HR = 1.03; 95%CI = 0.53-2.00).

Conclusions: Multiple anthropometric measures were positively associated with ORC risk, particularly among women. Efforts to reduce obesity may be important for cancer prevention in Hispanic/Latino adults.