1.
Aleksandrova, Krasimira, et al.
(author)
Combined impact of healthy lifestyle factors on colorectal cancer : a large European cohort study
2014
In: BMC Medicine. - : BioMed Central. - 1741-7015. ; 12:1, s. 168-
Journal article (peer-reviewed) abstract
BACKGROUND: Excess body weight, physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption and certain dietary factors are individually related to colorectal cancer (CRC) risk; however, little is known about their joint effects. The aim of this study was to develop a healthy lifestyle index (HLI) composed of five potentially modifiable lifestyle factors - healthy weight, physical activity, non-smoking, limited alcohol consumption and a healthy diet, and to explore the association of this index with CRC incidence using data collected within the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort. METHODS: In the EPIC cohort, a total of 347,237 men and women, 25- to 70-years old, provided dietary and lifestyle information at study baseline (1992 to 2000). Over a median follow-up time of 12 years, 3,759 incident CRC cases were identified. The association between a HLI and CRC risk was evaluated using Cox proportional hazards regression models and population attributable risks (PARs) have been calculated. RESULTS: After accounting for study centre, age, sex and education, compared with 0 or 1 healthy lifestyle factors, the hazard ratio (HR) for CRC was 0.87 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.44 to 0.77) for two factors, 0.79 (95% CI: 0.70 to 0.89) for three factors, 0.66 (95% CI: 0.58 to 0.75) for four factors and 0.63 (95% CI: 0.54 to 0.74) for five factors; P-trend <0.0001. The associations were present for both colon and rectal cancers, HRs, 0.61 (95% CI: 0.50 to 0.74; P for trend <0.0001) for colon cancer and 0.68 (95% CI: 0.53 to 0.88; P-trend <0.0001) for rectal cancer, respectively (P-difference by cancer sub-site = 0.10). Overall, 16% of the new CRC cases (22% in men and 11% in women) were attributable to not adhering to a combination of all five healthy lifestyle behaviours included in the index. CONCLUSIONS: Combined lifestyle factors are associated with a lower incidence of CRC in European populations characterized by western lifestyles. Prevention strategies considering complex targeting of multiple lifestyle factors may provide practical means for improved CRC prevention.
2.
Schmidt, Julie A, et al.
(author)
Insulin-like growth factor-I and risk of differentiated thyroid carcinoma in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition
2014
In: Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention. - 1055-9965 .- 1538-7755. ; 23:6, s. 976-985
Journal article (peer-reviewed) abstract
Background: Little is known about the causes of thyroid cancer, but insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) might play an important role in its development due to its mitogenic and anti-apoptotic properties. Methods: This study prospectively investigated the association between serum IGF-I concentrations and risk of differentiated thyroid carcinoma in a case-control study nested within the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition. 345 incident cases of differentiated thyroid carcinoma were individually matched to 735 controls by study centre, sex, and age, date, time, and fasting status at blood collection, follow-up duration, and for women menopausal status, use of exogenous hormones, and phase of menstrual cycle at blood collection. Serum IGF-I concentrations were measured by immunoassay, and risk of differentiated thyroid cancer in relation to IGF-I concentration was estimated using conditional logistic regression. Results: There was a positive association between IGF-I concentrations and risk of differentiated thyroid carcinoma: the odds ratio for a doubling in IGF-I concentration was 1.48 (95% confidence interval: 1.06 - 2.08; ptrend = 0.02). The positive association with IGF-I was stable over time between blood collection and cancer diagnosis. Conclusion: These findings suggest that IGF-I concentrations may be positively associated with risk of differentiated thyroid carcinoma. Impact: This study provides the first prospective evidence of a potential association between circulating IGF-I concentrations and risk of differentiated thyroid carcinoma and may prompt the further investigations needed to confirm the association.
3.
Vrieling, Alina, et al.
(author)
One-carbon metabolism biomarkers and risk of urothelial cell carcinoma in the European prospective investigation into cancer and nutrition
2019
In: International Journal of Cancer. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0020-7136 .- 1097-0215. ; 145:9, s. 2349-2359
Journal article (peer-reviewed) abstract
Published associations between dietary folate and bladder cancer risk are inconsistent. Biomarkers may provide more accurate measures of nutrient status. This nested case-control analysis within the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) investigated associations between pre-diagnostic serum folate, homocysteine, vitamins B6 and B12 and the risk of urothelial cell carcinomas of the bladder (UCC). A total of 824 patients with newly diagnosed UCC were matched with 824 cohort members. Serum folate, homocysteine, and vitamins B6 and B12 were measured. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for total, aggressive, and non-aggressive UCC were estimated using conditional logistic regression with adjustment for smoking status, smoking duration and intensity, and other potential confounders. Additionally, statistical interaction with smoking status was assessed. A halving in serum folate concentrations was moderately associated with risk of UCC (OR: 1.18; 95% CI: 0.98-1.43), in particular aggressive UCC (OR: 1.34; 95% CI: 1.02-1.75; p-heterogeneity = 0.19). Compared to never smokers in the highest quartile of folate concentrations, this association seemed only apparent among current smokers in the lowest quartile of folate concentrations (OR: 6.26; 95% CI: 3.62-10.81, p-interaction = 0.07). Dietary folate was not associated with aggressive UCC (OR: 1.26; 95% CI: 0.81-1.95; p-heterogeneity = 0.14). No association was observed between serum homocysteine, vitamins B6 and B12 and risk of UCC. This study suggests that lower serum folate concentrations are associated with increased UCC risk, in particular aggressive UCC. Residual confounding by smoking cannot be ruled out and these findings require confirmation in future studies with multiple measurements.
4.
Dik, Vincent K, et al.
(author)
Prediagnostic intake of dairy products and dietary calcium and colorectal cancer survival - results from the EPIC cohort study.
2014
In: Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers & Prevention. - 1538-7755 .- 1055-9965. ; 23:9, s. 1813-1823
Journal article (peer-reviewed) abstract
Background We investigated whether prediagnostic reported intake of dairy products and dietary calcium are associated with colorectal cancer (CRC) survival. Methods Data from 3,859 subjects with CRC (42.1% male, mean age at diagnosis 64.2 ± 8.1 years) in the European Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort were analyzed. Intake of dairy products and dietary calcium was assessed at baseline (1992-2000) using validated, country-specific dietary questionnaires. Multivariable Cox regression models were used to calculate hazard ratios (HR) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (95%-CI) for CRC specific death (n=1,028) and all-cause death (n=1,525) for different quartiles of intake. Results The consumption of total dairy products was not statistically significantly associated with risk of CRC-specific death (adjusted HR Q4 vs. Q1: 1.17 95%-CI 0.97-1.43) nor of all-cause death (Q4 vs. Q1: 1.16 95%-CI 0.98-1.36). Multivariable adjusted HRs for CRC-specific death (Q4 vs. Q1) were 1.21 (95%-CI 0.99-1.48) for milk, 1.09 (95%-CI 0.88-1.34) for yoghurt and 0.93 (95%-CI 0.76-1.14) for cheese. The intake of dietary calcium was not associated with the risk of CRC-specific (adjusted HR Q4 vs. Q1: 1.01 95%-CI 0.81-1.26) nor of all-cause death (Q4 vs. Q1: 1.01 95%-CI 0.84-1.21). Conclusions The prediagnostic reported intake of dairy products and dietary calcium are not associated with disease-specific or all-cause risk of death in patients diagnosed with CRC. Impact The impact of diet on cancer survival is largely unknown. This study shows that despite it's inverse association with CRC risk, the prediagnostic intake of dairy and dietary calcium do not affect CRC survival.
5.
Huang, Jiaqi, et al.
(author)
Helicobacter pylori infection, chronic corpus atrophic gastritis and pancreatic cancer risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort : A nested case-control study
2017
In: International Journal of Cancer. - : Wiley. - 0020-7136 .- 1097-0215. ; 140:8, s. 1727-1735
Journal article (peer-reviewed) abstract
The association between H. pylori infection and pancreatic cancer risk remains controversial. We conducted a nested case-control study with 448 pancreatic cancer cases and their individually matched control subjects, based on the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort, to determine whether there was an altered pancreatic cancer risk associated with H. pylori infection and chronic corpus atrophic gastritis. Conditional logistic regression models were applied to calculate odds ratios (ORs) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs), adjusted for matching factors and other potential confounders. Our results showed that pancreatic cancer risk was neither associated with H. pylori seropositivity (OR = 0.96; 95% CI: 0.70, 1.31) nor CagA seropositivity (OR = 1.07; 95% CI: 0.77, 1.48). We also did not find any excess risk among individuals seropositive for H. pylori but seronegative for CagA, compared with the group seronegative for both antibodies (OR = 0.94; 95% CI: 0.63, 1.38). However, we found that chronic corpus atrophic gastritis was non-significantly associated with an increased pancreatic cancer risk (OR = 1.35; 95% CI: 0.77, 2.37), and although based on small numbers, the excess risk was particularly marked among individuals seronegative for both H. pylori and CagA (OR = 5.66; 95% CI: 1.59, 20.19, p value for interaction < 0.01). Our findings provided evidence supporting the null association between H. pylori infection and pancreatic cancer risk in western European populations. However, the suggested association between chronic corpus atrophic gastritis and pancreatic cancer risk warrants independent verification in future studies, and, if confirmed, further studies on the underlying mechanisms.
6.
Romieu, Isabelle, et al.
(author)
Fiber intake modulates the association of alcohol intake with breast cancer
2017
In: International Journal of Cancer. - : Wiley. - 0020-7136 .- 1097-0215. ; 140:2, s. 316-321
Journal article (peer-reviewed) abstract
Alcohol intake has been related to an increased risk of breast cancer (BC) while dietary fiber intake has been inversely associated to BC risk. A beneficial effect of fibers on ethanol carcinogenesis through their impact on estrogen levels is still controversial. We investigated the role of dietary fiber as a modifying factor of the association of alcohol and BC using data from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC). This study included 334,850 women aged 35–70 years at baseline enrolled in the ten countries of the EPIC study and followed up for 11.0 years on average. Information on fiber and alcohol intake at baseline and average lifetime alcohol intake were calculated from country-specific dietary and lifestyle questionnaires. Hazard ratios (HR) of developing invasive BC according to different levels of alcohol and fiber intake were computed. During 3,670,439 person-years, 11,576 incident BC cases were diagnosed. For subjects with low intake of fiber (<18.5 g/day), the risk of BC per 10 g/day of alcohol intake was 1.06 (1.03–1.08) while among subjects with high intake of fiber (>24.2 g/day) the risk of BC was 1.02 (0.99–1.05) (test for interaction p = 0.011). This modulating effect was stronger for fiber from vegetables. Our results suggest that fiber intake may modulate the positive association of alcohol intake and BC. Alcohol is well known to increase the risk for BC, while a fiber-rich diet has the opposite effect. Here the authors find a significant interaction between both lifestyle factors indicating that high fiber intake can ease the adverse effects associated with alcohol consumption. Consequently, women with high alcohol intake and low fiber intake (<18.5 g/day) had the highest risk for BC. Specific benefits were associated with fibers from vegetable, warranting further investigations into specific fiber sources and their mechanistic interactions with alcohol-induced BC risk.
7.
Kaaks, Rudolf, et al.
(author)
Insulin-like growth factor I and risk of breast cancer by age and hormone receptor status : A prospective study within the EPIC cohort
2014
In: International Journal of Cancer. - : Wiley. - 0020-7136 .- 1097-0215. ; 134:11, s. 2683-2690
Journal article (peer-reviewed) abstract
Experimental evidence shows cross-talk in mammary cells between estrogen, insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) and their respective receptors and possible synergistic effects of estrogen receptor (ER) activation and increased IGF-I signaling with regard to breast tumor development, and epidemiological evidence suggests that circulating IGF-I levels may be related more to the risk of ER-positive than ER-negative breast cancer. Using a case–control study nested within the prospective European EPIC cohort (938 breast cancer cases and 1,394 matched control subjects), we analyzed the relationships of prediagnostic serum IGF-I levels with the risk of estrogen and progesterone receptor-positive and -negative breast tumors. IGF-I levels were positively associated with the risk of ER+ breast tumors overall (pre- and postmenopausal women combined, odds ratio (OR)Q4-Q1 = 1.41 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.01–1.98] for the highest vs. lowest quartile; OR = 1.17 [95% CI 1.04–1.33] per 1-standard deviation (SD) increase in IGF-I, ptrend = 0.01) and among women who were diagnosed with breast cancer at 50 years or older (ORQ3-Q1 = 1.38 [95% CI 1.01–1.89]; OR = 1.19 [95% CI 1.04–1.36] per 1-SD increase in IGF-I, ptrend = 0.01) but not with receptor-positive disease diagnosed at an earlier age. No statistically significant associations were observed for ER− breast tumors overall and by age at diagnosis. Tests for heterogeneity by receptor status of the tumor were not statistically significant, except for women diagnosed with breast cancer at 50 years or older (phet = 0.03 for ER+/PR+ vs. ER−/PR− disease). Our data add to a global body of evidence indicating that higher circulating IGF-I levels may increase risk specifically of receptor-positive, but not receptor-negative, breast cancer diagnosed at 50 years or older.
8.
Nimptsch, Katharina, et al.
(author)
Association of CRP genetic variants with blood concentrations of C-reactive protein and colorectal cancer risk.
2015
In: International Journal of Cancer. - : Wiley. - 0020-7136 .- 1097-0215. ; 136:5, s. 1181-1192
Journal article (peer-reviewed) abstract
High blood concentrations of C-reactive protein (CRP) have been associated with elevated risk of colorectal cancer in several prospective studies including the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC), but it is unknown whether these observations reflect a causal relationship. We aimed to investigate whether CRP genetic variants associated with lifelong higher CRP concentrations translate into higher colorectal cancer risk. We conducted a prospective nested case-control study within EPIC including 727 cases diagnosed between 1992 and 2003 and 727 matched controls selected according to an incidence-density sampling protocol. Baseline CRP concentrations were measured in plasma samples by a high sensitivity assay. Tagging single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the CRP gene (rs1205, rs1800947, rs1130864, rs2808630, rs3093077) were identified via HapMap. The causal effect of CRP on colorectal cancer risk was examined in a Mendelian Randomization approach utilizing multiple CRP genetic variants as instrumental variables. The SNPs rs1205, rs1800947, rs1130864 and rs3093077 were significantly associated with CRP concentrations and were incorporated in a CRP allele score which was associated with 13% higher CRP concentrations per allele count (95% confidence interval 8-19%). Using the CRP-score as instrumental variable, genetically twofold higher CRP concentrations were associated with higher risk of colorectal cancer (odds ratio 1.74, 95% confidence interval 1.06-2.85). Similar observations were made using alternative definitions of instrumental variables. Our findings give support to the hypothesis that elevated circulating CRP may play a direct role in the etiology of colorectal cancer.
9.
10.
Lukanova, Annekatrin, et al.
(author)
Pre-diagnostic plasma testosterone, sex hormone binding globulin, IGF-I and hepatocellular carcinoma : etiological factors or risk markers?
2014
In: International Journal of Cancer. - : Wiley-Blackwell. - 0020-7136 .- 1097-0215. ; 134:1, s. 164-173
Journal article (peer-reviewed) abstract
Elevated pre-diagnostic testosterone and insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) concentrations have been proposed to increase risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the metabolism of these hormones is altered as a consequence of liver damage and they may have clinical utility as HCC risk markers. A case-control study was nested within the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort and included 125 incident HCC cases and 247 individually matched controls. Testosterone, sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) and IGF-I were analyzed by immunoassays. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated by conditional logistic regression. The area under the receiver operating curves (AUC) was calculated to assess HCC predictive ability of the tested models. After adjustments for epidemiological variables (body mass index, smoking, ethanol intake, hepatitis and diabetes) and liver damage (a score based on albumin, bilirubin, aspartate aminotransaminase, alanine aminotransaminase, gamma-glutamyltransferase and alkaline phosphatase concentrations), only SHBG remained significantly associated with risk (OR for top versus bottom tertile of 3.86 (1.32-11.3), ptrend =0.009). As a single factor SHBG had an AUC of 0.81 (0.75-0.86). A small, but significant increase in AUC was observed when SHBG was added to a model including the liver damage score and epidemiological variables (from 0.89 to 0.91, p=0.02) and a net reclassification of 0.47% (0.45-0.48). The observed associations of HCC with pre-diagnostic SHBG, free testosterone and IGF-I concentrations are in directions opposite to that expected under the etiological hypotheses. SHBG has a potential to be tested as pre-diagnostic risk marker for HCC.
