Correlations of choriocarcinoma mortality with alcohol drinking and reproductive factors in China

This country-based correlation study examined associations of choriocarcinoma mortality with reproductive characteristics and lifestyle factors using data from an ecological survey in 49 Chinese rural counties. Univariate correlation and multivariate regression analyses showed that choriocarcinoma mortality rates among Chinese women were significantly related to alcohol consumption, number of pregnancies and age at menopause, and inversely associated with age at first birth. No clear association was seen between choriocarcinoma mortality and smoking, body mass index, dietary factors and levels of serum nutrients, sex hormones, and antibodies to herpes simplex virus. Limitations of these ecological data preclude causal inferences, but the findings add to the limited evidence of the role of reproductive characteristics in choriocarcinoma risk and provide additional clues to other risk factors for this rare and seldom examined cancer.