Comparative Analysis of Anthropometric Parameters and Body Composition of Patients with Breast Cancer and Healthy Women in the Postmenopausal Period

Abstract

According to a statistical review (2018) in Latvia, there are more than one thousand women (n =1266) with the diagnosis of breast cancer. Assessments of anthropometrical parameters weremade according to the World Health Organisation recommendations for morbidity risk analysis.The aim of the study was to determine the differences and changes of anthropometric parametersand indices in a control group and in a clinical group (initial oncological diagnosis without treat-ment intervention). We examined women in their postmenopausal period. The control group in-cluded apparently healthy women (n = 181) and the clinical group included women (n = 44) withinitial oncological diagnosis (breast cancer 1stand 2ndstage). In order to assess body anthro-pometric characteristics we used the body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, waist/heightratio and skin fold thickness measurement. The study results were assessed using statisticalanalyses in the IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 22.0 software: Shapiro–Wilk andMann–Whitney tests with a two-tailedp-value < 0.05). The analysis of statistical data showedthat, despite the low number of patients in the clinical group, we found a significantly lower waist-to-hip ratio, skinfold thickness abovem. biceps brachii, skinfold thickness abovem. triceps bra-chii, and subscapular and suprailiac skin fold thickness in this group.