서지선1, 박현아1, 강재헌1, 김경우1, 조영규1, 허양임2, 박여린1

인제대학교 서울백병원 가정의학과1, 인제대학원대학교 보건경영학과2

Background: Obesity not only does increase the incidence of breast cancer, but also affects the course of treatment,
recurrence and mortality. This study aims to evaluate on the obesity status of Korean breast cancer survivors
and their obesity-related lifestyles.
Methods: The study included 125 Korean female breast cancer survivors aged over 19 year old enrolled in the
2009-11 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Women who answered ‘yes’ to the question
‘have you ever been diagnosed breast cancer by a physician?’ was defined as a breast cancer survivors.
Height, weight, and waist circumference were measured and Body mass index (BMI) was calculated. Body fat
percent was assessed by dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Standardized surveys by trained interviewers were
used to investigate survivors’ obesity-related lifestyles such as physical activities, sleeping hours and nutrients
intake.
Results: 48.4% of Korean breast cancer survivors were obese. 44.7% had abdominal obesity and 89.2% had
body fat percent over 30. Their physical activity level was generally low; only 22.5% maintained health-enhancing
level of physical activities. Fat intake (14.4 [0.8] %) was as low and carbohydrate intake (74.2 [1.2] %) was
high. However, daily dietary fiber intake was low (10.5 [1.1] g). Factors that were found to be significantly related
with obesity in Korean breast cancer survivors were low education level (P=0.042), smoking (P<0.001),
having chronic diseases (P=0.002) and short sleeping hours (P<0.001).
Conclusions: It is mandatory for physician to evaluate obesity status of breast cancer survivors as soon as their
diagnosis and give proper intervention to maintain healthy weight and healthy obesity related lifestyle.
Korean J Health Promot 2014;14(3):93-102
Keywords: Obesity, Body mass index, Physical activity, Metabolic equivalent, Nutrient intake