Biomedical subjects

G L Splansky

Publications and source records attributed to G L Splansky.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1992

Serum cholesterol level, body mass index, and the risk of colon cancer. The Framingham Study.

BACKGROUND: Some studies have linked low serum cholesterol levels to increased risk of colon cancer, particularly in men. Results have been inconsistent, with preclinical disease frequently offered to explain any apparent association. METHODS: The Framingham Study cohort of 5209 persons, initially 30-62 years of age and observed more than 30 years, was evaluated. Baseline data included lipoprotein fractions, total cholesterol levels, body mass index, alcohol intake, and cardiovascular risk variables such as cigarette smoking, hypertension, and glucose intolerance. RESULTS: In this population, colon cancer in men is related inversely to serum cholesterol levels, even when the first 10 years of follow-up are eliminated to reduce the effect of preclinical disease. This effect is concentrated in the Svedberg 0-20 fraction, corresponding to low-density lipoprotein levels. Another finding only in men is the direct relation of body mass index to colon cancer incidence. CONCLUSIONS: Combined initial low serum cholesterol levels and obesity appear to indicate a four times greater risk for colon cancer in men as compared with people with average values of both variables. The reasons for these observations are unknown.

Adult↗

PubMed1991

The cancer experience in the Framingham Heart Study cohort.

The almost 40-year records of The Framingham Heart Study (FHS) cohort were reviewed to establish the cancer experience of this noninstitutionalized group of white subjects. Diagnoses were confirmed from pathology and laboratory reports and clinical notes. Age-specific incidence rates were compared with Connecticut Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) data. Among the 5209 subjects, 1201 malignancies were confirmed. Median age at diagnosis was 69 for men and 65 for women. Lung, prostate, skin, and colon accounted for more than half of men's cancers; breast, colon, and skin made up half of the women's. FHS and Connecticut SEER rates matched closely, with the same primary tumor sites appearing commonly in both groups. Thus, the FHS cohort should provide a fair database for analysis of risk factors in cancer incidence, as it has done in cardiovascular diseases.

Adenocarcinoma↗

PubMed1990

Body fat distribution and breast cancer in the Framingham Study.

We examined the relation between central body fat distribution and breast cancer in a prospective cohort of women who participated in the Framingham Study. At the baseline examination in 1948, a total of 2,201 women aged 30-62 years were analyzed. An index of central to peripheral body fat (the central adiposity ratio) was calculated from the sum of the trunkal skinfolds (chest, subscapular, and abdominal) divided by the sum of the extremity skinfolds (triceps and thigh). These skinfolds were measured at the fourth examination in 1954. The cohort was followed for up to 28 years and yielded 106 cases of breast cancer. When divided into quartiles based on the central adiposity ratio, only women in the fourth quartile (those with the highest central to peripheral body fat distribution) demonstrated an increased risk for breast cancer. The age- and adiposity-adjusted relative risk estimate for having an increased central adiposity ratio (fourth quartile) compared to lower central adiposity ratios was 1.8 (95% confidence interval, 1.2-2.6). Adjustment for potential confounders of height, parity, and education did not appreciably alter this estimate (1.7, 1.1-2.5). There was no association between degree of adiposity, as measured by the sum of the five skinfolds or by body mass index (weight in kg divided by height in m2), and subsequent breast cancer. The results of this study suggest that increased central to peripheral body fat distribution predicts breast cancer risk independently of the degree of adiposity and may be a more specific marker of a premalignant hormonal pattern than degree of adiposity.

Adult↗

PubMed1978

Cyclic platelet dysfunction in IgE-mediated allergy.

Diminished platelet aggregation responses to one or more aggregating agents were found in 25 of 32 patients with nasal allergy studied at the peak of the allergy season. Abnormal in-season platelet aggregation induced by epinephrine and collagen was significantly improved when repeated out-of-season, while incomplete platelet aggregation induced by adenosine diphosphate (ADP) and thrombin was unchanged. Recombination of an in-season serum factor with autologous, out-of-season normally aggregating platelets caused market inhibition of platelet aggregation. Mean bleeding times of 20 symptomatic patients were also prolonged during the height of the pollination season. These data suggest that the allergic diathesis is a model for the study of cyclic, nondrug induction of platelet dysfunction.

Blood Platelet Disorders↗