Table 2.
The socio-demographic and clinical characteristics of the three groups: BC, BBD, and HB.
| Variables | BC (n = 109) | BBD (n = 550) | HB (n = 86) | p-value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age (mean, years) | 47.2 ± 8.9 | 32.9 ± 11.4 | 35.6 ± 11.0 | <0.001∗ |
| Age at menarche (mean, years) | 12.9 ± 1.2 | 12.9 ± 5.3 | 12.8 ± 1.5 | 0.981 |
| Age at menopause (mean, years) | 49.7 ± 4.2 | 49.4 ± 4.9 | 48.0 ± 4.6 | 0.602 |
| Being a Malay | 56 (51.4%) | 314 (57.1%) | 48 (55.8%) | 0.546 |
| Being married | 74 (67.9%) | 280 (50.9%) | 60 (69.8%) | <0.001∗ |
| Being employed | 67 (61.5%) | 326 (59.3%) | 50 (58.1%) | 0.881 |
| Being a housewife | 37 (33.9%) | 84 (15.3%) | 22 (25.6%) | <0.001∗ |
| Breast lump | 102 (93.6%) | 486 (88.4%) | 67 (77.9%) | 0.003∗ |
| Breast swelling | 34 (31.2%) | 86 (15.6%) | 12 (14.0%) | <0.001∗ |
| Breast pain | 53 (48.6%) | 240 (43.6%) | 43 (50.0%) | 0.395 |
| Breast abscess | 0 (0.0%) | 14 (2.5%) | 2 (2.3%) | 0.244 |
| Breast rash | 4 (3.7%) | 21 (3.8%) | 3 (3.5%) | 0.988 |
| Other symptoms | 12 (11.0%) | 63 (11.5%) | 14 (16.3%) | 0.416 |
| Unilateral breast symptom | 106 (97.2%) | 479 (87.1%) | 78 (91.8%) | 0.006∗ |
| Duration of symptoms (mean, weeks) | 28.0 ± 39.6 | 42.0 ± 95.0 | 35.6 ± 1138.1 | 0.356 |
| History of breastfeeding | 47 (43.1%) | 148 (26.9%) | 31 (36.0%) | 0.002∗ |
| History of using OCP | 23 (22.5%) | 58 (12.2%) | 16 (21.3%) | 0.007∗ |
| History of using HRT | 4 (3.9%) | 8 (1.7%) | 3 (3.9%) | 0.231 |
| History of drinking alcohol | 4 (3.9%) | 16 (3.4%) | 3 (3.9%) | 0.948 |
| History of cigarette smoking | 5 (4.9%) | 13 (2.7%) | 2 (2.6%) | 0.499 |
| Positive family history of BC | 13 (11.9%) | 30 (5.5%) | 7 (8.1%) | 0.041∗ |
OCP: oral contraceptive pill; HRT: hormone replacement therapy; ∗ statistically significant difference.