Use of volumetric breast density measures for the prediction of weight and body mass index

Abstract

Body Mass Index (BMI) is an important confounding factor for breast density assessment, particularly where a relative measure (percentage density) is used. Since height and weight are not routinely collected at screening, we investigated the relationship between breast and fat volumes computed by Quantra™ and Volpara™ and weight/BMI in 6898 women for whom self-reported values are available. A significant positive correlation was found between breast volume and fat volume with both weight and BMI. BMI and Volpara™ average fat volume showed the strongest positive relationship (r = 0.728, p<0.001). Using these results we predicted weight and BMI for a separate group of women; these showed moderate intraclass correlation (ICC) agreement with self-reported weight and BMI. The strongest relationship was with weight predicted using Quantra™ average fat volume (ICC = 0.634, CI = 0.573-0.689, p<0.001), however our results suggest that it is not possible to accurately predict individuals' weight and BMI from volumetric breast density measures. © 2014 Springer International Publishing.