Endometrial cancer risk factors in Singapore Chinese: a prospective cohort study

Purpose: The incidence of Endometrial cancer (EC) has grown substantially in Asia over the past decade. However, few studies have addressed risk factors associated with EC incidence in Asian populations. We explored the association between reproductive and dietary risk factors and EC in the Singapore Chinese Health Study (SCHS), one of the largest prospective cohort studies in Asia. Methods: Data were collected from 34,028 ethnically Chinese women aged 45-74 residing in Singapore, enrolled between 1993 and 1998. Baseline demographic, dietary, and reproductive factors were collected via structured questionnaires. EC cases were identified from the Singapore Cancer Registry (n = 126) up to 2010. Cox proportional hazard models were used to analyze association between EC and personal, reproductive, and dietary factors.Results: The incidence of EC in this population was 28.8 per 10 0,0 0 0 person-years. Regardless of menopausal status, obesity (BMI >= 27) was associated with increased EC risk (HR = 2.22, 95% CI 1.26- 3.92), while later age at menarche was associated with decreased EC risk (HR = 0.14, 95% CI 0.04-0.46). In postmenopausal women, later age at menopause was associated with increased EC risk (HR = 2.82, 95% CI 1.24-6.43). Lifestyle and nutritional factors were not associated with risk of EC in this cohort.Conclusions: This study is one of the largest cohort studies exploring EC risk factors in Asian populations. Our study identified similarities in EC risk factors for European and Asian populations, which potentially suggests that strategies developed for EC prevention in Western populations can be potentially appropri-ate for the Singapore Chinese population due to risk factor similarities.(c) 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

This study explores the risk factors for endometrial cancer in the Singapore Chinese population and identifies obesity, later age at menarche, and later age at menopause as significant factors. The study also suggests that strategies developed for endometrial cancer prevention in Western populations may be applicable to the Singapore Chinese population due to similarities in risk factors.