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Different Exposures to Risk Factors Do Not Explain the Inverse Relationship of Occurrence Between Cancer and
Federica Prinelli1, Fulvio Adorni1, Maria Lea Correa Leite1
1Epidemiology Unit, Institute of Biomedical Technologies-National Research Council, Segrate.
Alzheimer Disease and Associated Disorders
|August 11, 2017
Summary
Cancer occurrence is inversely associated with Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Diseases (AD/PD). This study found that shared non-genetic risk factors do not explain this inverse relationship between cancer and AD/PD.
Area of Science:
- Epidemiology
- Neurodegenerative Diseases
- Oncology
Background:
- Observational studies suggest an inverse relationship between cancer and Alzheimer's/Parkinson's Diseases (AD/PD).
- The underlying reasons for this inverse comorbidity are not fully understood.
- Known non-genetic risk factors for cancer and AD/PD may play a role.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether differing distributions of non-genetic risk factors explain the inverse association between cancer and AD/PD.
- To analyze the relationship between cancer occurrence and the risk of developing AD/PD.
Main Methods:
- Nested case-control studies within a large cohort (n=1515) in Lombardy, Italy (1991-2012).
- Conditional logistic regression used to calculate odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI).
- Adjusted for multiple non-genetic risk factors including education, obesity, hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia, physical activity, smoking, alcohol, and diet.
Main Results:
- Cancer was inversely associated with AD/PD risk (OR, 0.66; 95% CI, 0.32-1.38) after controlling for confounders.
- The risk of cancer was also reduced in individuals with AD/PD (OR, 0.42; 95% CI, 0.20-0.91).
- Differences in exposure to non-genetic risk factors did not account for the observed inverse relationship.
Conclusions:
- The inverse relationship between cancer and AD/PD is not explained by the distribution of common non-genetic risk factors.
- Further research is needed to elucidate the biological mechanisms underlying this comorbidity.
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