Association between triglyceride glucose index and breast cancer in 142,184 Chinese adults: findings from the REACTION study

Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2024 Jun 6:15:1321622. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2024.1321622. eCollection 2024.

Abstract

Background: The triglyceride glucose (TyG) index has been associated with an increased risk in breast cancer. However, this association remains unclear among the Chinese population. This study aimed to investigate whether the TyG index is associated with the risk of prevalent breast cancer in Chinese women.

Methods: This cross-sectional study included 142,184 women from the REACTION (Risk Evaluation of Cancers in Chinese Diabetic Individuals: A Longitudinal) Study, which recruited adults aged 40 years or older from 25 centers across mainland China between 2011 and 2012. The TyG index was calculated according to the formula: Ln (fasting triglycerides [mg/dL] × fasting glucose [mg/dL]/2). Multivariable-adjusted logistic regression models were used to evaluate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) regarding the associations between the TyG index and breast cancer.

Results: Multivariable-adjusted logistic regression analysis showed that compared with the lowest quartile of the TyG index, the highest quartile of the TyG index was significantly associated with an increased risk of prevalent breast cancer, with an OR (95% CI) of 1.61 (1.19-2.17). In the stratified analysis, the association of each 1 SD increase in the TyG index with risk of prevalent breast cancer was more dominant in individuals with menarche at age 13-17, those who were postmenopausal, those with a history of breastfeeding, and those who had two to four children, with the ORs (95% CIs) of 1.35 (1.09-1.68), 1.27 (1.05-1.54), 1.26 (1.05-1.52), and 1.32 (1.08-1.62), respectively. Moreover, among those without discernible insulin resistance (homeostatic model assessment-insulin resistance [HOMA-IR] ≥2.5), hyperglycemia and dyslipidemia, each 1 SD increase in the TyG index was associated with a 1.36-fold increase in breast cancer risk, with an OR (95% CI) of 2.36 (1.44-3.87).

Conclusion: The TyG index is significantly associated with the prevalent breast cancer risk among middle-aged and elderly Chinese women.

Keywords: Chinese population; breast cancer; glucose; insulin resistance; triglyceride.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Blood Glucose* / analysis
  • Blood Glucose* / metabolism
  • Breast Neoplasms* / blood
  • Breast Neoplasms* / epidemiology
  • China / epidemiology
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • East Asian People
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Longitudinal Studies
  • Middle Aged
  • Risk Factors
  • Triglycerides* / blood

Substances

  • Triglycerides
  • Blood Glucose

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This study was supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People’s Republic of China (Grant No. 2022YFC2505202 and 2023YFC2506704), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 82370810, 91857205, 82088102, 82170819, 82372347 and 82200998), Science and Technology Committee of Shanghai (Grant No. 22Y31900300, 23JS1400900 and 23Y11908400), Clinical Research Project of Shanghai Municipal Health Commission (Grant No. 20224Y0087 and 20214Y0002), Shanghai Committee of Science and Technology, and Innovative Research Team of High-Level Local Universities in Shanghai.