Prevalence of traditional atherosclerotic risk factors in newly diagnosed colorectal and breast cancer patients.

Due to the shared risk factors between cardiovascular disease (CVD) and certain cancers such as breast cancer (BC) and colorectal cancer (CRC), our study aimed to assess the CVD risk factors among newly diagnosed patients with BC and CRC. The study utilized baseline data from the ongoing Cardiovascular Events in Breast and Colorectal Cancers (CIBC) cohort study conducted in Isfahan since 2019. Only patients who had recently been diagnosed with BC or CRC and had not undergone any treatment were included in the study. Trained interviewers administered questionnaires to collect information on the demographic, socioeconomic, and smoking status of the participants. Additionally, metabolic and physical factors were measured following established guidelines. A total of 542 patients were included in the study, with 394 (72.7%) diagnosed with BC, 147 (27.1%) with CRC, and one patient having both conditions. The average age of BC patients was 49.46±11.15 years, which was younger compared to CRC patients. The majority of patients (90.8%) were nonsmokers, and a significant proportion (91.2%) did not engage in sufficient physical activity. Less than half of the patients exhibited hypertension, while the prevalence of diabetes was comparatively lower. Obesity, particularly abdominal obesity, was more common among BC patients compared to CRC patients. In our population, we observed that patients with CRC had a higher mean age compared to those with BC, and they exhibited a higher prevalence of common metabolic risk factors. On the other hand, obesity was more prevalent among BC patients. In terms of the shared risk factors between CVD and BC, our population experienced menarche within the expected timeframe, and the mean age of menopause was also within the normal range.