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Biomedical subjects

B Modan

Publications and source records attributed to B Modan.

At least 145 records · Page 8Linked to original sources
PubMed1986

Role of fat, animal protein, and dietary fiber in breast cancer etiology: a case-control study.

A case-control study of 818 breast cancer (BC) patients and 2 matched control groups, surgical controls (SCs) and neighborhood controls (NCs), was undertaken in Israel between 1975 and 1978. The interview schedule included a detailed dietary history based on the frequency of consumption of 250 food items, which were grouped according to their principal nutrient component. The average frequency of consumption of each food item in each nutrient group was computed. Medical, demographic, hormonal, and parity histories were also obtained. Risks associated with fat, animal protein, and fiber consumption were evaluated. Two types of analysis were performed [in 2 age groups (less than 50 yr and greater than or equal to 50 yr)], using the conditional logistic method: evaluating the risk attributable to nutrition only and controlling for nondietary confounding factors as well. When no adjustment for nondietary confounding factors was made, the risk increased with fat intake in both age groups [one-tailed P-value for linear trend = .08 and .07 in age less than 50 and .01 and .10 for the greater than or equal to 50 age category for the BC case (BCC)-SC and BCC-NC comparisons, respectively]. Increased fiber intake decreased the risk in the younger age group (one-tailed P-value for linear trend = .06 and .07 for the BCC-SC and BCC-NC comparisons, respectively), while in the 50-or-over age category the trend was inconsistent. The risk associated with animal protein was much less clear. For women in the highest quartiles of fat and animal protein intake and the lowest quartiles of fiber intake, risk was about twice as high as that for women in the lowest quartiles of fat and animal protein intake and in the highest quartile of fiber intake (one-tailed P-value for linear trend = .04 and .08 for age less than 50 and .08 and .09 for the age category greater than or equal to 50 BCC-SC and BCC-NC comparisons, respectively). When hormonal and demographic confounding factors were controlled for, this pattern persisted but it remained significant for 1 control only. Power increased when cases were analyzed against both controls simultaneously (one-tailed P-value for linear trend = .10 for age less than 50 and .02 for age greater than or equal to 50). Thus a higher fat-animal protein and lower fiber diet is associated with increased cancer risk, but this relationship needs to be studied further.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Overweight and changes in weight throughout adult life in breast cancer etiology. A case-control study.

Numerous epidemiologic studies have found body size to be a significant risk factor in the etiology of breast cancer. In an Israeli study population of 1,065 breast cancer patients, 964 surgical controls, and 981 neighborhood controls, height and weight at three periods (age 18, "most of adult life," and recent) were ascertained. The authors analyzed these parameters and body mass index (weight/height) for each period, as well as body mass index changes throughout life, controlling for age, menstrual status, and ethnic origin. Odds ratios were determined for three body mass index categories: 19.1-23, 23.1-27, and 27.1+, with a relative risk of 1 for body mass index less than or equal to 19. Their results show an increase in risk for breast cancer with greater recent body mass index among postmenopausal women aged 60+ (n = 461 for breast cancer, n = 414 for surgical controls, n = 401 for neighborhood controls). Crude odds ratios for the breast cancer/surgical control comparison are 1.23, 1.58, and 2.20, respectively, for each body mass index category; for the breast cancer/neighborhood control comparison 2.16, 2.44, and 2.99, respectively. Odds ratios adjusted for confounding factors (ages at menarche, first birth, and menopause; number of births; years of education; previous benign breast disease; and family history of breast cancer) are 1.17, 1.44, and 2.38, respectively (breast cancer/surgical control); and 1.78, 1.92, and 2.53, respectively (breast cancer/neighborhood control). Overweight does not emerge as a risk factor for breast cancer among premenopausal or younger postmenopausal women. Weight loss from most of adult life to recent weight appears to be protective, since mean loss in the 60+ age category is greater in both control groups than in breast cancer patients. In addition, breast cancer patients aged 60+ gained more weight during adult life than controls, and premenopausal breast cancer patients gained less weight than controls (for both comparisons, p less than or equal to 0.05, breast cancer vs. all controls combined.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Coffee and methylxanthines and breast cancer: a case-control study.

A dietary case-control study based on 818 newly diagnosed breast cancer (BC) patients was conducted in Israel between 1975 and 1978. The role of coffee and total methylxanthine intake from coffee, tea, cola, chocolate, and cocoa drinks was evaluated in the BC patients as compared to that in two matched control populations [surgical controls (SC) and neighborhood controls (NC)]. Because it has been suggested that caffeine enhances mammary carcinogenesis in rats fed high polyunsaturated fat diets, analysis was done also in relation to fat consumption. When comparison was done to both matched control groups, a nonsignificant negative association was found between consumption of cups of coffee and BC (odds ratios of greater than or equal to 4 cups of coffee/day vs. less than or equal to 1 per week = 0.6 for BC/NC and 0.7 for BC/SC). This association was observed in all 3 ethnic subgroups studied. The pattern was stronger among the high-fat consumers after controlling for several hormonal confounding factors (two-tailed P-value for linear trend = 0.06 for SC and P = 0.05 for NC). In addition, when the consumption of methylxanthine of BC patients was compared to that of benign breast patients, adjusted by age and ethnic group, a diminished risk was found (odds ratio for BC of the highest level of methylxanthine vs. lowest level = 0.59).

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Increased prevalence of polycythemia vera in parents of patients on polycythemia vera study group protocols.

An investigation of relatives of 652 patients entered on studies of the Polycythemia Vera Study Group yielded five documented cases of the disease among the parents of patients. When compared with expected values based on the Connecticut Tumor Registry and other population studies a significant increase was found in the lifetime incidence of polycythemia vera in parents of these patients.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Clinical features of Jewish Israeli patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the vulva.

The clinical features of all 150 Jewish patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the vulva diagnosed in Israel during a 13-year period (1961-73) are presented. As in other studies, the frequencies of diabetes, hypertension, atherosclerosis and early onset of menopause were relatively high, and there was a long time lag from onset of symptoms to diagnosis. The most common complaint was pruritus vulvae, and the labia were the most common site of the primary lesion. The predictive value of clinical lymph node examination was reasonably good; lymph node involvement adversely affected survival. In contrast to other studies, the frequency of nulliparity and venereal diseases was low and the most common second primary malignancy was carcinoma of the breast. During the period reviewed, the surgical approach was mainly conservative and the postoperative mortality high, yielding a low 5-year survival rate. We attribute this to the lack of trained gynecologic oncologists during the period reviewed. Preliminary data indicate that in recent years a more aggressive surgical approach is being used and an improved 5-year survival rate achieved.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Screening for early detection of radiation-associated thyroid cancer: a pilot study.

In the 1950s, approximately 20,000 Israeli children received scalp irradiation as treatment for tinea capitis (ringworm of the scalp). To evaluate the necessity and feasibility of early screening of these individuals for thyroid cancer, a small pilot program was undertaken. The examination consisted of a thorough palpation of the thyroid gland and the surrounding area. A 99mTc thyroid scan and thyroid function tests were performed on individuals in whom palpation suggested a nodular abnormality. A multidisciplinary committee then made a recommendation for or against surgery. A total of 443 persons were screened, and nodular abnormalities of the thyroid were detected in 24 (5.4%). Of these persons, nine displayed symptomatology or reported knowledge of a thyroid condition; despite this, three of them were not receiving treatment. This left 18 subjects--15 new cases and 3 previously untreated patients--needing follow-up care. Altogether nine persons were recommended for surgery, but one refused. All eight of the excised lesions were benign: four colloid nodules and four adenomas. While the screening program was feasible, the fact that no cancers were detected suggested that in a population exposed to a very low dose of radiation, thyroid screening may not be justified on a large scale.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

Seasonality in the occurrence of breast cancer.

A nationwide study of all 3183 female patients with breast cancer in Israel diagnosed over a 7-year period (1960 to 1966) was conducted. Monthly series analysis showed a clear seasonal pattern in the symptomatology of the disease most pronounced in patients younger than 55 years, in all ethnic groups, mainly confined to cases with a nonlocalized tumor at diagnosis. Peaks occurred during spring, and troughs appeared during autumn. It is suggested that the pattern is of endogenous, probably hormonal nature, although environmental factors cannot be excluded.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

Some epidemiologic aspects of carcinoma of the vulva in Israel.

A nationwide study of squamous cell carcinoma of the vulva in Israeli Jewish women has been conducted for a comparison of the incidence, the age pattern and the ethnic distribution of squamous cell carcinoma of the vulva to those of squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix. The mean annual incidence rates by age in squamous cell carcinoma of the vulva rise continuously to age 70 + while in squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix a plateau is reached at age 40 to age 69. In contrast to the relatively low incidence of squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix in Israeli Jewish women, the age-specific incidence rates of squamous cell carcinoma of the vulva are similar to those of white women in the United States. On the other hand, there is a trend to a higher incidence of both squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix and squamous cell carcinoma of the vulva in the North African ethnic group of Israeli Jewish women.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

Mental function following scalp irradiation during childhood.

Between 1950 and 1960 about 20,000 israeli children were treated for tinea capitis by x-ray therapy as part of a large public health campaign to eradicate the disease. Dosimetric studies determined that these children were subjected to a mean brain dose of 130 rads. Almost 20 years later, possible radiation effects on the central nervous system were evaluated by comparing several measures of mental and brain function in approximately 11,000 of the irradiated children and in two nonirradiated, tinea-free comparison groups: (a) ethnic, sex- and age-matched individuals from the general population, and (b) siblings. While not all comparisons were statistically significant, there was a consistent trend for the irradiated subjects to exhibit signs of central nervous system inpairment more often than either comparison group. The irradiated children had lower examination scores on scholastic aptitude, intelligence quotient (IQ) and psychologic tests, completed fewer school grades, and had an increased risk for mental hospital admissions for certain disease categories. A slightly higher frequency of mental retardation was also suggested. These-long-lasting scholastic and mental health effects lead the authors to conclude that radiation to the immature brain may cause damage to the central nervous system.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1982

Long-lasting cerebral functional changes following moderate dose x-radiation treatment to the scalp in childhood: an electroencephalographic power spectral study.

EEG tracings were compared in 44 young adults who received scalp x-radiation treatment for tinea capitis during childhood and 59 non-irradiated control subjects. The irradiated subjects were exposed, over 20 years previously, to a mean dose of 130 rads to the brain. Visual analysis of the EEG revealed an insignificant excess of abnormalities among the irradiated subjects compared to the controls. Power spectral density function analysis showed increased power values among the irradiated subjects, particularly in the beta wave frequencies. This finding provides further evidence for suspecting that x-irradiation during brain maturation may cause long-lasting damage to the brain tissue.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1982

Reduction of mortality in general medical in-patients by low-dose heparin prophylaxis.

The effect of prophylactic low-dose heparin on mortality was tested in 1358 consecutive patients admitted to the medical wards of an acute care hospital. Eligibility for treatment or exclusion was ascertained on admission by predefined contraindications. Eligible patients with even-number hospital records were assigned to treatment (5000 U twice daily), those with odd-number records served as controls. Because determination of eligibility was open to bias, evaluation of treatment was based on comparison of the total even-number group (669 patients, of which 411 were treated with heparin), and the total odd-number group (689 patients, none treated with heparin). Mortality was significantly lower in the even-number group-7.8% (52 of 669 patients) versus 10.9% (75 of 689 patients) in the odd-number group; the difference increased consistently with length of hospitalization (p = 0.025). The estimated reduction in mortality attributable to heparin was 31.1%. We believe that low-dose heparin prophylaxis is appropriate in all immobilized medical patients who are not at risk of bleeding.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

A note on the role of dietary retinol and carotene in human gastro-intestinal cancer.

Dietary data relating in 406 patients with gastrointestinal cancers (cases) and 812 controls have been analysed to test the hypotheses that dietary vitamin A (retinol) and its precursor, carotene, may be protective agents in human carcinogenesis. There was no deficit among cases in the intake of retinol-containing food items whereas several of the main carotene-containing fruits and vegetables were eaten less often among cases than among controls. However, when total daily intake was estimated, there was no protective effect of carotene, perhaps implying that some other constituent of the fruits and vegetables is protective.

Carotenoids↗
PubMed1981

Herpesvirus type 2 in adenocarcinoma of the uterine cervix: a possible association.

Sera from 16 Jewish patients with histologically confirmed adenocarcinoma of the uterine cervix (AUC) and 32 control subjects matched by age and ethnic origin were examined for herpesvirus type 1 (HSV-1) and type 2 (HSV-2) neutralizing antibodies. Titers were determined by means of the quantitative plaque reduction neutralization test on VERO cell monolayers, using HSV-1 strain VR3 and HSV-2 strain. Significantly increased levels of antibodies against both virus strains were found in the AUC patients as compared with the controls. The trends in the AUC series resembled those in a previous similar case-control study of squamous cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix (SUC). Thus, the previously observed association between HSV-2 and SUC is true for AUC as well, despite differences in the clinical and epidemiologic characteristics of the two malignancies.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMed1980

Long-term cerebral effects of small doses of x-irradiation in childhood as manifested in adult visual evoked responses.

In Israel between the years 1949 and 1960, approximately 20,000 children ranging from 1 to 15 years of age were irradiated for eradication of tinea capitis. Radiation to the cerebral hemipheres ranged up to 140 rads. Of those treated, now adults, 44 subjects were elected by stratified sampling for recording and analysis of visual evoked responses (VERs). A control group of 57 subjects similar in age and ethnic origin was chosen. Two occipital leads, a right and a left, were recorded by the international 10-20 system. Fifty responses to diffuse white-flash stimulation were averaged in each case. The first 256 msec (data points) of each VER were reduced to 77 variables by repeated averaging over three adjacent data points; these variables were then analyzed by several statistical methods. The analyses detected significant differences between the VER averages in study subjects compared with controls. These differences may reflect delayed, probably permanent functional damage to the central nervous system caused by small doses of x-radiation (XR) to immature normal human brain. The left hemispheres appeared to be more involved, consistent with the fact that these children received, on the average, more XR to the left side of the brain, as shown in simulated phantom models. This disparity is reflected in a greater degree of difference between the left VERs of the irradiated versus control group. The major differences between the VERs occurred in the first part of the secondary response and suggest possible subcortical involvement. The results strengthen previous evidence of potential hazards of XR in children.

Adult↗