Breast cancer incidence and nutritional status with particular reference to body weight and height.

The epidemiological literature on breast cancer is reviewed with particular emphasis on the possible etiological role of nutritional status as reflected by weight and height. The results of a prospective study and preliminary results of a population-based case-control study seem to indicate that body size or body mass rather than overweight (obesity) is a risk factor. A considerable proportion of the differences in incidence between the Netherlands and Japan can be explained by differences in body mass. The biological mechanisms mediating nutritional status and breast cancer are believed to be of an endocrinological-metabolic nature.