[Dietary behavior, way of life, and nasopharyngeal cancer]

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma is prevalent in Southeast Asia, Maghreb countries and Greenland/Alaska. This cancer, wherever prevalent, is closely associated to the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), but its geographical repartition also suggests the possibility of a cultural factor. A comparison of food habits and way of life of Cantonese, Maghreb populations and Eskimos shows certain common points: dried fish or meat, fermented and sometimes rotten, as well as salt preserved vegetables. Certain berries of Euphorbiaceae are eaten by children and the plant itself is used in traditional medicine. These Euphorbiacea contain cancer promoting agents, able to reactivate the EBV latency. The hypothesis proposed here is that cancerous effects common to the different regions at high risk for nasopharyngeal carcinoma exists and that they either act separately or reactivate the EBV latency.