Do genetic factors protect for early onset lung cancer? A case control study before the age of 50 years

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Early onset lung cancer shows some familial aggregation, pointing to a genetic predisposition. This study was set up to investigate the role of candidate genes in the susceptibility to lung cancer patients younger than 51 years at diagnosis.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>246 patients with a primary, histologically or cytologically confirmed neoplasm, recruited from 2000 to 2003 in major lung clinics across Germany, were matched to 223 unrelated healthy controls. 11 single nucleotide polymorphisms of genes with reported associations to lung cancer have been genotyped.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Genetic associations or gene-smoking interactions was found for <it>GPX1(Pro200Leu) </it>and <it>EPHX1(His113Tyr)</it>. Carriers of the Leu-allele of <it>GPX1(Pro200Leu) </it>showed a significant risk reduction of OR = 0.6 (95% CI: 0.4–0.8, p = 0.002) in general and of OR = 0.3 (95% CI:0.1–0.8, p = 0.012) within heavy smokers. We could also find a risk decreasing genetic effect for His-carriers of <it>EPHX1(His113Tyr) </it>for moderate smokers (OR = 0.2, 95% CI:0.1–0.7, p = 0.012). Considered both variants together, a monotone decrease of the OR was found for smokers (OR of 0.20; 95% CI: 0.07–0.60) for each protective allele.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Smoking is the most important risk factor for young lung cancer patients. However, this study provides some support for the T-Allel of <it>GPX1(Pro200Leu) </it>and the C-Allele of <it>EPHX1(His113Tyr) </it>to play a protective role in early onset lung cancer susceptibility.</p

Erfurter M&auml;nner-Kohorten-Studie (ERFORT-Studie): Studiendesign und ausgew&auml;hlte Ergebnisse.

Objectives: The main objective of the Erfurt male cohort study (ERFORT study) is to investigate cardiovascular risk factors, life-style related factors and psychosocial factors with regard to total and cause-specific mortality and morbidity during a follow-up of 30 years. This paper describes the study design, descriptive data on cardiovascular and psychosocial factors at baseline survey and findings of three 5-year follow-up medical examinations. Methods: The ERFORT study is a population-based prospective cohort study. The baseline survey from 1973 to 1975 examined a random population-based sample of 1,160 males aged 35 to 61 years (response rate 74.6%) from the city of Erfurt, East Germany followed by3 medical follow-up examinations after 5 years each. Life status was followed for 30 years. Results: During the follow-up examinations over 15 years the prevalence for cardiovascular diseases, such as myocardial infarction, angina pectoris and intermittent claudication doubled. The prevalence of diabetes increased from 2.8% to 12%. Elevated blood pressure (a parts per thousand yenaEuro parts per thousand 160/95 mmHg) increased slightly, whereas antihypertensive treatment increased strongly from 8.7 to 33.6%. Smoking and diabetes were revealed to be strong predictors for the onset of claudication. Elevated 1 h post-load glucose levels (a parts per thousand yenaEuro parts per thousand 200 mg/dl) as well as diabetes resulted in a statistically significant increase in all-cause mortality. Finally, weight cycling during a 15-year follow-up showed a statistically increased risk for all-cause mortality in the subsequent 15 years, which was higher than for stable obesity. Conclusions: This German male cohort, which was followed for several decades, is an outstanding database to answer questions about long-term associations between biological and psychosocial factors and mortality in men. It shows the feasibility of a long-term follow-up

Externe Qualitätssicherung im Kinder- und Jugendgesundheitssurvey (KiGGS)

The results of the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS) of the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) will be of great importance for health policy and research. Therefore, in this study internal quality assurance was supplemented by an external quality assurance which was carried out by the institute of epidemiology at the GSF National Research Center for Environment and Health. The subjects were the interviewer training, sampling and response, field work and data management. External quality assurance was defined as &#39;an audit of internal quality assurance measures and systematic observation and spot checks to ensure quality requirements were fulfilled&#39;. The requirements followed the manual of operation and the recognized epidemiologic standards and guidelines. For the different subjects, tests and detailed check-lists were developed and used. The quality requirements were fulfilled: The field work was performed with high quality and remarkable engagement over the whole time from May 2003 to May 2006, which resulted in high response and data quality. An extensive, efficient quality management system was in place for the data management

Bronchial responsiveness, spirometry and mortality in a cohort of adults.

Objective. Prospective population studies have reported that pulmonary function, measured by forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1), is an independent predictor for mortality. Besides, several studies found that death from all causes is higher in asthmatics than in non-asthmatics. However, none of these studies examined whether bronchial hyperresponsiveness (BHR), one of the key features in asthma, can be used as a predictor for mortality. Thus, the aim of this study was to analyze the association between BHR, FEV1, and all-cause mortality in a population-based cohort of adults. Methods. Within the cross-sectional survey ECRHS-I Erfurt (1990-1992), 1162 adults aged 20-65 years performed lung function tests, including spirometry and BHR testing by methacholine inhalation up to a cumulative dose of 2 mg. BHR was assessed from the methacholine dose nebulized at &gt;= 20% fall of FEV1. After circa 20 years of follow-up, the association between baseline lung function, BHR, and mortality was investigated. Results. A total of 85 individuals (7.3%) died during a mean follow-up period of 17.4 years (SD = 2.4). FEV1, but not forced vital capacity (FVC), was a predictor for mortality. In men, BHR increased the mortality risk (OR = 2.6, 95% CI: 1.3-5.3; adjusted for age and BMI). Additional adjustment for asthma did not change the results (OR = 2.4, 95% CI: 1.2-5.0). However, after an additional adjustment for pack years of cigarette smoking or airway obstruction, the association was not statistically significant anymore (OR = 1.8, 95% CI: 0.8-4.0, OR = 1.9, 95% CI: 0.9-4.3, respectively). Conclusions. BHR was associated with an increased mortality risk in men. Potential explanatory factors for this association are cigarette smoking, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), or asthma. Thus, BHR might be an indirect predictor for all-cause mortality. FEV1 was an independent predictor for all-cause mortality

Road traffic, location of rooms and hypertension.

We compared the prevalence of hypertension in subjects that lived on main roads with those that lived in side streets. An odds ratio of 1.310 (95% CI = 1.052-1.631) was found for those who lived on the main roads. In this traffic-exposed subgroup, subjects that had the living and the bedroom facing the road an odds ratio of 1.736 (CI = 0.673-1.882) was found in comparison with those who had both rooms on the rear side of the house. In subjects that lived on side streets the location of the rooms was meaningless (OR = 1.102, CI = 0.648-1.874)

Road traffic noise and hypertension - accounting for the location of rooms.

OBJECTIVE: The association between the exposure to road traffic noise and the prevalence of hypertension was assessed accounting for background air pollution and the location of rooms with respect to the road. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was carried out inviting all subjects aged 35-74 years for participation that lived on 7 major trunk roads in 3-4 storey terraced apartment buildings and in parallel side streets that were completely shielded from noise due to the rows of houses along the major roads. The study was performed on 1770 subjects that did not have a self-reported medical doctor diagnosis of hypertension before they moved into their current residence. Noise levels at the facade of the front and the rear side of the houses were drawn from available noise maps of the area. A large set of covariates were considered to adjust the results for confounding. RESULTS: Significant increases between road traffic noise and hypertension were found with respect to the 24h A-weighted average noise indicator LDEN. The adjusted odds ratio (OR) per noise level increment of 10dB(A) was 1.11 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.00-1.23). Stronger significant estimates of the noise effect were found in subjects with long residence time (OR=1.20, CI=1.05-1.37), and with respect to the exposure of the living room during daytime (OR=1.24, CI=1.08-1.41) compared with the exposure of the bedroom during night-time (OR=0.91, CI=0.78-1.06). CONCLUSION: Chronic exposure to road traffic noise is associated with an increased risk of high blood pressure. Daytime noise exposure of the living room had a stronger impact on the association than night-time exposure of the bedroom