Alcohol and breast cancer tumor subtypes in a Spanish Cohort

Although alcohol intake is an established risk factor for overall breast cancer, few studies have looked at the relationship between alcohol use and breast cancer risk by the four major subtypes of breast cancer and very few data exist in the alcohol-breast cancer relationship in Spanish women. A population-based case-control study was conducted in Galicia, Spain. A total of 1766 women diagnosed with invasive breast cancer between 1997 and 2014 and 833 controls participated in the study. Data on demographics, breast cancer risk factors, and clinico-pathological characteristics were collected. We examined the alcohol-breast cancer association according to the major breast cancer subtypes [hormone-receptor-positive, HER2-negative (luminal A); hormone-receptor-positive, HER2-positive (luminal B); hormone-receptor-negative, HER2-negative (TNBC); and hormone-receptor-negative, HER2-positive (HER2 overexpressing)] as well as grade and morphology in Spanish women. With the exception of HER2 overexpressing, the risk of all subtypes of breast cancer significantly increased with increasing alcohol intake. The association was similar for hormonal receptor positive breast cancer, i.e., luminal A and luminal B breast cancer (odds ratio, OR 2.16, 95 % confidence interval, CI 1.55–3.02; and OR 1.98, 95 % CI 1.11–3.53, respectively), and for TNBC (TNBC: OR 1.93, 95 % CI 1.07–3.47). The alcohol-breast cancer association was slightly more pronounced among lobular breast cancer (OR 2.76, 95 % CI 1.62–4.69) than among ductal type breast cancers (OR 2.21, 95 % CI 1.61–3.03). In addition, significant associations were shown for all grades, I, II and III breast cancer (OR 1.98, 95 % CI 1.26–3.10; OR 2.34, 95 % CI 1.66–3.31; and OR 2.16, 95 % CI 1.44–3.25 for Grades I, II and III, respectively). To our knowledge, this is the first study to examine the association of breast cancer subtypes and alcohol intake in Spanish women. Our findings indicate that breast cancer risk increased with increasing alcohol intakes for three out of the four major subtypes of breast cancer. The association was similar for hormonal receptor positive breast cancer, i.e., luminal A and luminal B breast cancer, and for TNBC. The association seemed to be slightly more pronounced for lobular than ductal breast cancers. No differences were detected by grade.