July 13, 2006
Cigarette smoking and elevated fasting serum glucose are independently linked to high pancreatic cancer risk in Korean men.
"Pancreatic cancer is one of the most fatal human cancers and continues to be a major unsolved health problem. The goal of this study was to estimate the independent effects and interactions between cigarette smoking and diabetes on the risk of pancreatic cancer in Korean male population," scientists writing in the International Journal of Cancer report.
"Cigarette smoking and the risk of incidence and death from pancreatic cancer were examined in a 10-year prospective cohort study of 446,407 Korean men aged 40 to 65 years who received health insurance from the National Health Insurance Corporation and who had a medical evaluation in 1992. Relative risks (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated using a Cox proportional hazards model after adjusting for age, body mass index, exercise and alcohol use," explained J.E. Yun and colleagues, Yonsei University.
The data showed, "Current smoking was associated with an increased risk of incidence (RR=1.7, 95% CI=1.6-1.9) and mortality (RR=1.6, 95% CI=1.4-1.7) from pancreatic cancer. The RR for pancreatic cancer increased with both duration and amount of smoking. Diabetes was also associated with an increased risk of both incidence (RR=1.8, 95% CI=1.5-2.2) and mortality (RR=1.7, 95% CI=1.4-2.1) from pancreatic cancer. There was no interaction between smoking and fasting serum glucose in terms of pancreatic cancer risk."
The researchers concluded, "our prospective study has demonstrated that cigarette smoking and elevated fasting serum glucose are independently associated with an increased risk of pancreatic cancer in a large cohort of Korean males."
Yun and colleagues published their study in International Journal of Cancer (Cigarette smoking, elevated fasting serum glucose, and risk of pancreatic cancer in Korean men. Int J Cancer, 2006;119(1):208-212).
Additional information can be obtained by contacting S.H. Jee, Yonsei University, Graduate School Public Health, Dept. of Epidemiology & Health Promotion, Seoul 120749, South Korea.
The publisher of the International Journal of Cancer can be contacted at: Wiley-Liss, Division John Wiley & Sons Inc., 111 River St., Hoboken, NJ 07030, USA.
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