Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention

BACKGROUND: Cure fraction-the proportion of persons considered cured of cancer after long- term follow-up-reflects the total impact of cancer control strategies, including screening, without lead-time bias. Previous studies have not reported stage-stratified cure fraction across the spectrum of cancer types. METHODS: Using a mixture cure model, we estimated cure fraction across stages for 21 cancer types and additional subtypes. Cause-specific survival for 2.4 million incident cancers came from 17 US Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results registries for adults 40-84 years at diagnosis in 2006-2015, followed through 2020...

BACKGROUND: This study evaluates the relationship between smoking, alcohol, and breast cancer outcomes according to molecular subtype. METHODS: This population-based prospective cohort consisted of 3,876 women aged 20-69 diagnosed with a first primary invasive breast cancer from 2004 through 2015 in the Seattle-Puget Sound region. Breast cancer was categorized into three subtypes based on estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) expression: luminal (ER+), triple-negative (TN) (ER-/PR-/HER2-), and HER2-overexpressing (H2E) (ER-/HER2+)...

BACKGROUND: It is unclear whether health-related quality of life (HRQOL) disparities exist between racial/ethnic groups in older patients with esophageal cancer, pre- and post-diagnosis. METHODS: Using the SEER-MHOS national database, we included patients 65 years old or greater with esophageal cancer diagnosed from 1996-2017. HRQOL data within 36 months before and after diagnosis were measured by the Physical Component Summary (PCS) and Mental Component Summary (MCS) scores from the SF-36® and VR-12 instruments...

BACKGROUND: Lower levels of osteoprotegerin (OPG), the decoy receptor for RANK-ligand, have been reported among women with a BRCA1 mutation, suggesting OPG may be marker of cancer risk. Whether various reproductive, hormonal, or lifestyle factors impact OPG levels in these women is unknown. METHODS: BRCA1 mutation carriers enrolled in a longitudinal study, no history of cancer, and a serum sample for OPG quantification, were included. Exposure information was collected through self-reported questionnaire at study enrollment and every two years thereafter...

BACKGROUND: Cancer is becoming more of a chronic disease due to improvements in treatment and early detection for multiple cancer sites. To gain insight on increased life expectancy due to these improvements, we quantified trends in the loss in expectation of life (LEL) due to a cancer diagnosis for six cancer sites from 1975 through 2018. METHODS: We focused on patients diagnosed with female breast cancer, chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), colon and rectum cancer (CRC), diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), lung cancer, or melanoma between 1975 and 2018 from nine Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) cancer registries...

BACKGROUND: We investigated differences in cumulative incidence of first distant recurrence following non-metastatic breast cancer over a time period when new adjuvant therapies became available in Australia. METHODS: We conducted a health record linkage study of females with localized (T1-3N0) or regional (T4 or N+) breast cancer in the New South Wales Cancer Registry in 2001-2002 and 2006-2007. We linked cancer registry records with administrative records from hospitals, dispensed medicines, radiotherapy services and death registrations to estimate the 9-year cumulative incidence of distant recurrence and describe use of adjuvant treatment...

BACKGROUND: Women living in disadvantaged neighborhoods present with increased prevalence rates of triple negative breast cancer (TNBC). This study takes a spatial-temporal epidemiological approach to understand the impact of socio-environmental contextual factors on TNBC prevalence rates. METHODS: We analyzed 935 TNBC cases from a major cancer center registry, between 2005 and 2017, to explore spatial and space-time clusters of TNBC prevalence rates at the census tract and neighborhood scales...

BACKGROUND: Fecal immunochemical test (FIT) is an effective colorectal cancer screening modality. Little is known about prevalence, reasons, and testing after unsatisfactory FIT, or a FIT that cannot be processed by the laboratory due to inadequate stool specimen or incomplete labeling. METHODS: Our retrospective cohort study examined unsatisfactory FIT among average-risk individuals aged 50-74 years in a large, integrated, safety-net health system who completed an index FIT from 2010 to 2019...

BACKGROUND: To report quantitative and qualitative results on cervical cancer (CC) HPV-based screening and treatment algorithms, with/out triage with visual inspection after acetic acid (VIA), followed by ablative treatment (AT). METHODS: Women 30-54 years-old from Durban, South Africa were recruited, regardless of HIV status, randomized into one of two study arms and screened for HPV. VIA-triage arm: HPV-positive women were triaged using VIA, biopsied and received AT if VIA-positive and eligible; no-triage arm: eligible HPV-positive women received AT...

BACKGROUND: Metabolic syndrome (MetS), defined by the presence of three of more metabolic dysregulations such as hyperlipidemia, hyperinsulinemia, central obesity, and hypertension, has been associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and various cancers, including invasive breast cancer (IBC). Whether MetS is a risk factor for ductal carcinoma in situ of the breast (DCIS), a non-obligate precursor of IBC, remains unknown. METHODS: A total of 198,748 women aged 40-69 years, DCIS- and IBC-free at enrolment in UK Biobank, were included in the present study...

A decade ago, studies in human populations first revealed the existence of a unique microbial community in the breast, a tissue historically viewed as sterile, with microbial origins seeded through the nipple and/or translocation from other body sites. Since then, research efforts have been made to characterize the microbiome in healthy and cancerous breast tissues. The purpose of this review is to summarize the current evidence for the association of the breast microbiome with breast cancer risk and progression...

BACKGROUND: KRAS is among the most commonly mutated oncogenes in cancer, and previous studies have shown associations with survival in many cancer contexts. Evidence from both clinical observations and mouse experiments further suggests that these associations are allele- and tissue-specific. These findings motivate using clinical data to understand gene interactions and clinical covariates within different alleles and tissues. METHODS: We analyze genomic and clinical data from the AACR Project GENIE Biopharma Collaborative for samples from lung, colorectal, and pancreatic cancers...

BACKGROUND: We examined associations between adherence to adaptations of the 2018 World Cancer Research Fund/American Institute for Cancer Research (WCRF/AICR) cancer prevention recommendations and total, exposure-related and site-specific cancer risk. METHODS: 20,001 participants aged 40-69 years at enrollment into the Melbourne Collaborative Cohort Study in 1990-94, who had diet, body size and lifestyle re-assessed in 2003-07 ('baseline'), were followed-up through June-2021...

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have suggested anthocyanidins or anthocyanidin-rich foods and extracts exhibit protective effects against various cancers. However, the relationship between dietary anthocyanidins and the risk of biliary cancer remains uncertain. METHODS: This study used data from the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal, and Ovarian (PLCO) Cancer Screening Trial to investigate the relationship between total anthocyanidins intake and biliary cancer incidence. Cox regression analysis was conducted to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the incidence of biliary cancer, with adjustments made for confounding factors...

BACKGROUND: Tobacco smoke adversely affects the prognosis of adult cancers including myeloid leukemia, but less is known in children. METHODS: We evaluated whether pre- and post-natal exposures to tobacco smoke decrease 5-year survival of 1,235 childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and 188 childhood acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cases derived from a population-based case-control study in California (United States). Cases were diagnosed between 1995 and 2015 (median follow-up time of 13...

BACKGROUND: Low levels of 6-sulfatoxymelatonin, the primary urinary metabolite of melatonin, have been linked to cancer and cardiometabolic outcomes in White and female populations. METHODS: We examined the association between adulthood adiposity and 6-sulfatoxymelatonin levels in a racially and ethnically diverse population. Our study included 4,078 men in the Multiethnic Cohort with adiposity measurements at enrollment (1993-1996) and biomarkers measured in urines collected in 1995 and 2005...

BACKGROUND: Observational studies have suggested blood cell counts may act as predictors of cancer. It is not known whether these hematological traits are causally associated with lung cancer. METHODS: Two-sample bi-directional univariable Mendelian Randomization (MR) and multivariable MR were performed to investigate the causal association between hematological traits and the overall risk of lung cancer and three histological subtypes [lung adenocarcinoma, squamous cell lung cancer (SqCLC), and small cell lung cancer (SCLC)]...

BACKGROUND: We aimed to understand US adults' willingness to use a pharmacy-based fecal immunochemical test (FIT) distribution service for routine colorectal cancer (CRC) screening called PharmFIT™ using Diffusion of Innovation Theory, evaluating patient's appraisals of the program's relative advantage, compatibility, and complexity. METHODS: From March to April 2021, we conducted a national online survey of 1,045 US adults ages 45 to 75. We identified correlates of patient willingness to use PharmFIT™ using structural equation modeling...

BACKGROUND: The WCRF/AICR Cancer Prevention Recommendations are lifestyle-based guidelines which aim to reduce cancer risk. This study investigated, in the UK Biobank, associations between an abbreviated score to assess adherence to these Recommendations and the risk of all cancers combined and of 14 cancers for which there is strong evidence for links with diet, adiposity, and physical activity. METHODS: We used data from 288,802 UK Biobank participants (mean age 56...

BACKGROUND: Despite a better understanding of the increasing incidence of young-onset colorectal cancer (yCRC; age at diagnosis <50 years), little is known about its economic burden. Therefore, we estimated direct medical spending on yCRC before and after diagnosis. METHODS: We used linked administrative health databases in British Columbia, Canada, to create a study population of yCRC and average-age onset colorectal cancer (aCRC; age at diagnosis ≥ 50 years) cases, along with cancer-free controls...