(P12-024-25) Preliminary Comparison of Dietary Intake Among Breast Cancer Survivors Who Are Asian American or Non-Hispanic White

Objectives: Higher diet quality is associated with better health outcomes in breast cancer survivors (BCS). Experts emphasize the importance of culturally tailored dietary recommendations to improve diet, yet few characterize the diets of different race/ethnicities. We compared the diets of two culturally distinct groups: Chinese Americans (CA) and Non-Hispanic White (NHW) BCS.

Methods: This study is part of an ongoing investigation into the longitudinal health-related outcomes in CA and NHW BCS. Diet measures – total energy and nutrient intake, and overall diet quality scored using Healthy Eating Index (HEI) 2020 – were collected using two 24-hour recalls. Total HEI-2020 (range: 0-100) was evaluated based on 13 components, with 100 reflecting perfect adherence to Dietary Guidelines in balancing components to encourage (e.g., Total Fruit) and limit (e.g., Sodium). Mixed-effects model analyses were performed with diet measures from 49 participants [mean age: 53.2 ± 11.4 y; 31 CA, 18 NHW], adjusting for within-subject variability and total energy intake (SAS 9.4). Core foods were defined as those consumed by ≥ 25% of BCS in each race/ethnicity group.

Results: Mean HEI-2020 scores were 59.8 ± 13.4 for CA survivors and 61.9 ± 12.7 for NHW survivors, with no significant differences between groups (p >0.05). The CA group had higher HEI-2020 Total Fruit and lower HEI-2020 Dairy scores (both p < 0.04) than the NHW group. Consistent with the Dairy findings, the CA group consumed significantly less calcium (β =-233.9 ± 79.6; p=0.006). However, total protein intake was higher in the CA group (β =13.1±5.5; p=0.02). The CA group ate more cooked foods (boiled eggs, Bok choy) and the NHW group ate more raw produce (romaine lettuce, raw tomatoes, bananas). Tap water and regular coffee were core beverages for both groups, while seltzer water was an additional core beverage for the NHW group.

Conclusions: Preliminary findings reveal neither group consumed diets that perfectly aligned with recommendations. While diet quality was similar between CA and NHW BCS, there were notable differences in the types of foods and nutrients contributing to their overall scores. Further investigation into the contributors of diet quality among culturally distinct BCS is warranted.

Funding Sources: National Cancer Institute CA248413