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| 2. |
- Huesing, Anika, et al.
(author)
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Prediction of breast cancer risk by genetic risk factors, overall and by hormone receptor status
- 2012
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In: Journal of Medical Genetics. - : BMJ. - 0022-2593 .- 1468-6244. ; 49:9, s. 601-608
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Objective There is increasing interest in adding common genetic variants identified through genome wide association studies (GWAS) to breast cancer risk prediction models. First results from such models showed modest benefits in terms of risk discrimination. Heterogeneity of breast cancer as defined by hormone-receptor status has not been considered in this context. In this study we investigated the predictive capacity of 32 GWAS-detected common variants for breast cancer risk, alone and in combination with classical risk factors, and for tumours with different hormone receptor status. Material and methods Within the Breast and Prostate Cancer Cohort Consortium, we analysed 6009 invasive breast cancer cases and 7827 matched controls of European ancestry, with data on classical breast cancer risk factors and 32 common gene variants identified through GWAS. Discriminatory ability with respect to breast cancer of specific hormone receptor-status was assessed with the age adjusted and cohort-adjusted concordance statistic (AUROC(a)). Absolute risk scores were calculated with external reference data. Integrated discrimination improvement was used to measure improvements in risk prediction. Results We found a small but steady increase in discriminatory ability with increasing numbers of genetic variants included in the model (difference in AUROC(a) going from 2.7% to 4%). Discriminatory ability for all models varied strongly by hormone receptor status. Discussion and conclusions Adding information on common polymorphisms provides small but statistically significant improvements in the quality of breast cancer risk prediction models. We consistently observed better performance for receptor-positive cases, but the gain in discriminatory quality is not sufficient for clinical application.
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| 4. |
- Balassiano, Karen, et al.
(author)
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Aberrant DNA methylation of cancer-associated genes in gastric cancer in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC-EURGAST)
- 2011
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In: Cancer Letters. - Amsterdam : Elsevier BV. - 1872-7980 .- 0304-3835. ; 311:1, s. 85-95
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Epigenetic events have emerged as key mechanisms in the regulation of critical biological processes and in the development of a wide variety of human malignancies, including gastric cancer (GC), however precise gene targets of aberrant DNA methylation in GC remain largely unknown. Here, we have combined pyrosequencing-based quantitative analysis of DNA methylation in 98 GC cases and 64 controls nested within the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort and in cancer tissue and non-tumorigenic adjacent tissue of an independent series of GC samples. A panel of 10 cancer-associated genes (CHRNA3, DOK1, MGMT, RASSF1A, p14ARF, CDH1, MLH1, ALDH2, GNMT and MTHFR) and LINE-1 repetitive elements were included in the analysis and their association with clinicopathological characteristics (sex, age at diagnosis, anatomical sub-site, histological sub-type) was examined. Three out of the 10 genes analyzed exhibited a marked hypermethylation, whereas two genes (ALDH2 and MTHFR) showed significant hypomethylation, in gastric tumors. Among differentially methylated genes, we identified new genes (CHRNA3 and DOK1) as targets of aberrant hypermethylation in GC, suggesting that epigenetic deregulation of these genes and their corresponding cellular pathways may promote the development and progression of GC. We also found that global demethylation of tumor cell genomes occurs in GC, consistent with the notion that abnormal hypermethylation of specific genes occurs concomitantly with genome-wide hypomethylation. Age and gender had no significant influence on methylation states, but an association was observed between LINE-1 and MLH1 methylation levels with histological subtype and anatomical sub-site. This study identifies aberrant methylation patters in specific genes in GC thus providing information that could be exploited as novel biomarkers in clinics and molecular epidemiology of GC. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
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| 5. |
- Menvielle, Gwenn, et al.
(author)
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The Contribution of Risk Factors to the Higher Incidence of Invasive and In Situ Breast Cancers in Women With Higher Levels of Education in the European Prospective Investigation Into Cancer and Nutrition
- 2011
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In: American Journal of Epidemiology. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0002-9262 .- 1476-6256. ; 173:1, s. 26-37
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The authors investigated the role of known risk factors in educational differences in breast cancer incidence. Analyses were based on the European Prospective Investigation Into Cancer and Nutrition and included 242,095 women, 433 cases of in situ breast cancer, and 4,469 cases of invasive breast cancer. Reproductive history (age at first full-term pregnancy and parity), exposure to endogenous and exogenous hormones, height, and health behaviors were accounted for in the analyses. Relative indices of inequality (RII) for education were estimated using Cox regression models. A higher risk of invasive breast cancer was found among women with higher levels of education (RII = 1.22, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.09, 1.37). This association was not observed among nulliparous women (RII = 1.13, 95% CI: 0.84, 1.52). Inequalities in breast cancer incidence decreased substantially after adjusting for reproductive history (RII = 1.11, 95% CI: 0.98, 1.25), with most of the association being explained by age at first full-term pregnancy. Each other risk factor explained a small additional part of the inequalities in breast cancer incidence. Height accounted for most of the remaining differences in incidence. After adjusting for all known risk factors, the authors found no association between education level and risk of invasive breast cancer. Inequalities in incidence were more pronounced for in situ breast cancer, and those inequalities remained after adjustment for all known risk factors (RII = 1.61, 95% CI: 1.07, 2.41), especially among nulliparous women.
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| 7. |
- Sala, Nuria, et al.
(author)
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Prostate stem-cell antigen gene is associated with diffuse and intestinal gastric cancer in Caucasians: Results from the EPIC-EURGAST study
- 2012
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In: International Journal of Cancer. - : Wiley. - 0020-7136 .- 1097-0215. ; 130:10, s. 2417-2427
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- A genome-wide study performed in a Japanese population identified a strong association between SNP rs2294008 (Met1Thr) in the Prostate Stem Cell Antigen gene (PSCA) and diffuse-type gastric cancer (GC). This association was validated in different Asian populations, and, very recently, a study has been published in Caucasians. In this study, we analyzed the association between PSCA variation and GC risk in Caucasians from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort. Six tagSNPs covering the PSCA gene region were genotyped in 411 incident gastric adenocarcinoma cases and 1530 matched controls from a nested casecontrol study in the EPIC cohort. Associations were analyzed by unconditional logistic regression, adjusting for age, sex and country. The T allele of rs2294008 in PSCA was found to be a highly significant risk factor for GC (per allele OR = 1.42, 95% CI: 1.231.66, p-value = 6.5 x 10-6), particularly of the noncardia-type (per allele OR = 1.47, 95% CI: 1.191.81, p-value = 3 x 10-4). At contrast with previous studies, no significant differences were observed between the diffuse (per allele OR = 1.54, 95% CI: 1.201.96, p-value = 5 x 10-4) and the intestinal (per allele OR = 1.52, 95% CI: 1.201.93, p-value = 5 x 10-4) GC histological subtypes. Although rs12155758 and rs9297976 were also found associated with GC, this association appeared to be due to linkage disequilibrium with rs2294008. Haplotype analysis did not provide additional information. These results confirm the association between variation in the promoter region of PSCA and GC risk in Caucasians and also indicate that the rs2294008 variant is a similar risk factor for both the diffuse and intestinal-types of GC.
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| 8. |
- van Bakel, Marit M E, et al.
(author)
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Methodological challenges in the application of the Glycemic Index in epidemiological studies using data from the European prospective investigation into cancer and nutrition
- 2009
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In: Journal of Nutrition. - : Elsevier BV. - 0022-3166 .- 1541-6100. ; 139:3, s. 568-575
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Associations between the glycemic index (GI) or glycemic load (GL) and diseases are heterogeneous in epidemiological studies. Differences in assigning GI values to food items may contribute to this inconsistency. Our objective was to address methodological issues related to the use of current GI and GL values in epidemiological studies. We performed ecological comparison and correlation studies by calculating dietary GI and GL from country-specific dietary questionnaires (DQ) from 422,837 participants from 9 countries participating in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition study and single standardized 24-h dietary recalls (24-HDR) obtained from a representative sample (n = 33,404) using mainly Foster Powell's international table as a reference source. Further, 2 inter-rater and 1 inter-method comparison were conducted, comparing DQ GI values assigned by independent groups with values linked by us. The ecological correlation between DQ and 24-HDR was good for GL (overall r = 0.76; P < 0.005) and moderate for GI (r = 0.57; P < 0.05). Mean GI/GL differences between DQ and 24-HDR were significant for most centers. GL but not GI from DQ was highly correlated with total carbohydrate (r = 0.98 and 0.15, respectively; P < 0.0001) and this was higher for starch (r = 0.72; P < 0.0001) than for sugars (r = 0.36; P < 0.0001). The inter-rater and inter-method variations were considerable for GI (weighted kappa coefficients of 0.49 and 0.65 for inter-rater and 0.25 for inter-method variation, respectively) but only mild for GL (weighted kappa coefficients > 0.80). A more consistent methodology to attribute GI values to foods and validated DQ is needed to derive meaningful GI/GL estimates for nutritional epidemiology.
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| 9. |
- van Veklhoven, Catharina M., et al.
(author)
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Physical activity and lymphoid neoplasms in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and nutrition (EPIC)
- 2011
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In: European Journal of Cancer. - : Elsevier BV. - 1879-0852 .- 0959-8049. ; 47:5, s. 748-760
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: Lymphoid neoplasms are a heterogeneous group of cancers that originate in the lymphatic cells of the immune system. Several risk factors have been identified or suggested, but they all account for only a small proportion of the lymphoid neoplasm incidence. It has been hypothesised that regular exercise may modulate the immune system and thereby reduce the risk of developing the disease. Design and methods: The European Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort consists of 521,457 adults, recruited by 23 centres in 10 European countries. The analytical cohort included 343,756 participants, with 778 non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) cases (376 men and 402 women) and 690 B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (B-NHL) cases (326 men and 364 women). Multivariate Cox regression models were used to calculate hazard ratios (HR) for the association between total, recreational, occupational, and household physical activity and NHL and B-NHL risk, as well as the risk for several B-NHL subtypes. Models were stratified by study centre and age at recruitment and adjusted for various potential confounding factors. Results: We found no evidence of any effect of total physical activity on NHL (adjusted p-trend = 0.76 and 0.30 for men and women, respectively) and B-NHL risk (adjusted p-trend = 0.99 and 0.21 for men and women, respectively) for either men or women. Also no robust results were found for B-NHL subtype analyses among men or women. Conclusions: This study provided no consistent evidence for an association between various physical activity measures and the risk of lymphoid neoplasms or any of the B-NHL subtypes. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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| 10. |
- Agudo, Antonio, et al.
(author)
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Impact of Cigarette Smoking on Cancer Risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition Study
- 2012
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In: Journal of Clinical Oncology. - 0732-183X .- 1527-7755. ; 30:36, s. 4550-4557
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose Our aim was to assess the impact of cigarette smoking on the risk of the tumors classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer as causally associated with smoking, referred to as tobacco-related cancers (TRC). Methods The study population included 441,211 participants (133,018 men and 308,193 women) from the European Prospective Investigation Into Cancer and Nutrition. We investigated 14,563 participants who developed a TRC during an average follow-up of 11 years. The impact of smoking cigarettes on cancer risk was assessed by the population attributable fraction (AF(p)), calculated using the adjusted hazard ratios and 95% CI for current and former smokers, plus either the prevalence of smoking among cancer cases or estimates from surveys in representative samples of the population in each country. Results The proportion of all TRC attributable to cigarette smoking was 34.9% (95% CI, 32.5 to 37.4) using the smoking prevalence among cases and 36.2% (95% CI, 33.7 to 38.6) using the smoking prevalence from the population. The AF(p) were above 80% for cancers of the lung and larynx, between 20% and 50% for most respiratory and digestive cancers and tumors from the lower urinary tract, and below 20% for the remaining TRC. Conclusion Using data on cancer incidence for 2008 and our AF(p) estimates, about 270,000 new cancer diagnoses per year can be considered attributable to cigarette smoking in the eight European countries with available data for both men and women (Italy, Spain, United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Greece, Germany, Sweden, Denmark).
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