Table 3.
Summary of the evidence between CLS-B and select patient and tumor characteristics.
| First Author (Year) | N Studies | Summary of Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Patient characteristics | ||
| Obesity | 11 studies [69,70,71,73,80,81,82,83,84,85,86] | Strong positive association in studies of breast cancer patients (see Table 2); inconclusive evidence for BBD patients and women without BBD or breast cancer |
| Age | 8 studies [69,70,71,73,80,81,85,86] | Positive trend with age in studies of breast cancer patients although majority of associations were not statistically significant; no association observed between age and CLS-B among BBD patients [85] |
| Menopausal status | 6 studies [69,70,71,72,73,81] | Positive trend with postmenopausal status among breast cancer patients although majority of associations were not statistically significant |
| Race/ethnicity | 4 studies [69,70,81,87] | Evidence of greater CLS-B density among Black breast cancer patients in n = 2 studies [69,83] (no association when adjusting for BMI in the one study [69] with this information); No strong evidence of differences in CLS-B detection by country of origin among Hispanic/Latina patients [70] or when comparing Taiwanese to US Caucasian patients [80] |
| Smoking status | 2 studies [69,70] | Positive trend with current smoking status in breast cancer patients but inconclusive (very few current smokers in both studies) |
| Age at menopause | 2 studies [69,80] | Inconclusive evidence |
| Reproductive factors | 2 studies [69,80] | Inconclusive evidence |
| Family history of breast cancer | 2 studies [69,80] | Inconclusive evidence |
| Tumor characteristics | ||
| Molecular subtype | 6 studies [69,70,71,73,80,86] | No/little evidence for differences by ER status, PR status, or other tumor subtypes observed |
| Nodal status | 4 studies [69,80,82,86] | Some evidence suggesting association with lymph node-negative disease but all together inconclusive |
| Grade | 4 studies [69,80,82,86] | Inconclusive evidence |
| Stage | 3 studies [69,70,86] | Inconclusive evidence |
Abbreviations: BBD = benign breast disease; CLS-B = crown-like structures in the breast adipose tissue; ER = estrogen receptor; PR = progesterone receptor.