International Agency for Research on Cancer

About: International Agency for Research on Cancer is a government organization based out in Lyon, France. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Cancer & Population. The organization has 2989 authors who have published 9010 publications receiving 929752 citations. The organization is also known as: IARC.

Body Size and Risk of Colon and Rectal Cancer in the European Prospective Investigation Into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC)

Abstract: Background: Body weight and body mass index (BMI) are positively related to risk of colon cancer in men, whereas weak or no associations exist in women. This discrepancy may be related to differences in fat distribution between sexes or to the use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in women. Methods: We used multivariable adjusted Cox proportional hazards models to examine the association between anthropometric measures and risks of colon and rectal cancer among 368 277 men and women who were free of cancer at baseline from nine countries of the European Prospective Investigation Into Cancer and Nutrition. All statistical tests were two-sided. Results: During 6.1 years of follow-up, we identified 984 and 586 patients with colon and rectal cancer, respectively. Body weight and BMI were statistically significantly associated with colon cancer risk in men (highest versus lowest quintile of BMI, relative risk [RR] = 1.55, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.12 to 2.15; P-trend =.006) but not in women. In contrast, comparisons of the highest to the lowest quintile showed that several anthropometric measures, including waist circumference (men, RR = 1.39,95% CI = 1.01 to 1.93; P-trend = .001; women, RR = 1.48, 95% CI = 1.08 to 2.03; P-trend =.008), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR; men, RR = 1.51, 95% CI = 1.06 to 2.15; P-trend =.006; women, RR = 1.52, 95% CI = 1.12 to 2.05; P-trend =.002), and height (men, RR = 1.40, 95% CI = 0.99 to 1.98; P-trend =.04; women, RR = 1.79, 95% CI = 1.30 to 2.46; P-trend <.001) were related to colon cancer risk in both sexes. The estimated absolute risk of developing colon cancer within 5 years was 203 and 131 cases per 100 000 men and 129 and 86 cases per 100000 women in the highest and lowest quintiles of WHR, respectively. Upon further stratification, no association of waist circumference and WHR with risk of colon cancer was observed among postmenopausal women who used HRT. None of the anthropometric measures was statistically significantly related to rectal cancer. Conclusions: Waist circumference and WHR, indicators of abdominal obesity, were strongly associated with colon cancer risk in men and women in this population. The association of abdominal obesity with colon cancer risk may vary depending on HRT use in postmenopausal women; however, these findings require confirmation in future studies.

A meta‐analysis of epidemiological studies on the combined effect of hepatitis B and C virus infections in causing hepatocellular carcinoma

Abstract: The aim of the study was to assess whether co-infection by hepatitis-B virus (HBV) and hepatitis-C virus (HCV) is associated with a higher risk of developing hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) than each infection alone. A meta-analysis of data published up to June 1997 was performed. HBsAg and anti-HCV antibodies or HCV RNA (anti-HCV/HCV RNA) were considered as serological markers of current HBV and HCV infection respectively. A total of 32 case-control studies were suitable for a quantitative overview. The summary odds ratios (OR) were 13.7 for HBsAg positivity and 11.5 for anti-HCV/HCV RNA positivity. The OR for anti-HCV was lower among studies using second- or third-generation anti-HCV or HCV RNA (OR, 8.2) with respect to studies with first-generation anti-HCV test (OR, 19.1). When combining data from the studies with second- or third-generation anti-HCV or HCV RNA, the OR for HBsAg positivity and anti-HCV/HCV RNA negativity was 22.5 (95% confidence interval (CI), 19.5-26.0), the OR for anti-HCV/HCV RNA positivity and HBsAg negativity was 17.3 (95% CI, 13.9-21.6), and the OR for both markers positivity was 165 (95% CI: 81.2-374, based on 191 cases and 8 controls exposed). A synergism was found between HBV and HCV infections, the OR for co-infection being greater than the sum and lower than the product of those for each infection alone. The interaction was therefore negative according to the multiplicative model, providing epidemiological evidence both of an independent effect and of interference between the 2 viruses in the carcinogenic process.

The EPIC Project: Rationale and study design

Abstract: Background. The most consistent result of epidemiological studies on diet and cancer is that a diet rich in vegetables, fruit and, more generally, in plant foods is associated with a reduced risk of cancer at several anatomical sites. Epidemiological studies have been less consistent regarding the putative increase in risk related to consumption of fat or meat. In addition it has not been possible to identify clearly the biological role of specific nutrients or non-nutrient food components in the prevention or causation of cancer. Limitations in the precision and validity of traditional dietary intake measurements and limited use of biomarkers combined with narrow ranges of variations in dietary habits within single populations, have been the main reasons for the limited success in identifying more specific diet and cancer links. Methods. EPIC is a multi-centre prospective cohort study designed to investigate the relation between diet, nutritional and metabolic characteristics, various lifestyle factors and the risk of cancer. The study is based in 22 collaborating centres in nine European countries and includes populations characterized by large variations in dietary habits and cancer risk. Data are collected on diet, physical activity, sexual maturation and reproductive history, lifetime consumption of alcohol and tobacco, previous and current illnesses and current medication. Following a common protocol and using identical equipment, blood samples are collected, aliquoted into plasma, serum, white blood cells and erythrocytes, and stored in liquid nitrogen at -196°C for future laboratory analyses on cancer cases and matched healthy controls. Anthropometric measurements are taken according to a standard protocol. It is planned to include around 400 000 middle-aged ten and women. Results and conclusions. The collection of questionnaire data, anthropometric measurements and blood samples is under way. Almost 340 000 subjects had been included in the study by lid-1996, and recruitment is expected to be almost complete by 1997. Follow-up for cancer incidence and total mortality has started and it is expected that about 23 000 cancer cases will be identified during the first 10 years of follow-up.

Assessment of cumulative evidence on genetic associations: interim guidelines

Abstract: Established guidelines for causal inference in epidemiological studies may be inappropriate for genetic associations. A consensus process was used to develop guidance criteria for assessing cumulative epidemiologic evidence in genetic associations. A proposed semi-quantitative index assigns three levels for the amount of evidence, extent of replication, and protection from bias, and also generates a composite assessment of 'strong', 'moderate' or 'weak' epidemiological credibility. In addition, we discuss how additional input and guidance can be derived from biological data. Future empirical research and consensus development are needed to develop an integrated model for combining epidemiological and biological evidence in the rapidly evolving field of investigation of genetic factors.

A Genome-wide Association Study of Lung Cancer Identifies a Region of Chromosome 5p15 Associated with Risk for Adenocarcinoma.

Abstract: Three genetic loci for lung cancer risk have been identified by genome-wide association studies (GWAS), but inherited susceptibility to specific histologic types of lung cancer is not well established. We conducted a GWAS of lung cancer and its major histologic types, genotyping 515,922 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 5739 lung cancer cases and 5848 controls from one population-based case-control study and three cohort studies. Results were combined with summary data from ten additional studies, for a total of 13,300 cases and 19,666 controls of European descent. Four studies also provided histology data for replication, resulting in 3333 adenocarcinomas (AD), 2589 squamous cell carcinomas (SQ), and 1418 small cell carcinomas (SC). In analyses by histology, rs2736100 (TERT), on chromosome 5p15.33, was associated with risk of adenocarcinoma (odds ratio [OR] = 1.23, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.13–1.33, p = 3.02 × 10−7), but not with other histologic types (OR = 1.01, p = 0.84 and OR = 1.00, p = 0.93 for SQ and SC, respectively). This finding was confirmed in each replication study and overall meta-analysis (OR = 1.24, 95% CI = 1.17–1.31, p = 3.74 × 10−14 for AD; OR = 0.99, p = 0.69 and OR = 0.97, p = 0.48 for SQ and SC, respectively). Other previously reported association signals on 15q25 and 6p21 were also refined, but no additional loci reached genome-wide significance. In conclusion, a lung cancer GWAS identified a distinct hereditary contribution to adenocarcinoma.