Biomedical subjects

Paola Muti

Publications and source records attributed to Paola Muti.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed2005

Breast cancer risk and exposure in early life to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons using total suspended particulates as a proxy measure.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) are ubiquitous in the environment. We hypothesized that early life exposure to PAHs may have particular importance in the etiology of breast cancer. We conducted a population-based, case-control study of ambient exposure to PAHs in early life in relation to the risk of breast cancer. Total suspended particulates (TSP), a measure of ambient air pollution, was used as a proxy for PAHs exposure. Cases (n = 1,166) were women with histologically confirmed, primary, incident breast cancer. Controls (n = 2,105) were frequency matched by age, race, and county of residence to cases. Annual average TSP concentrations (1959-1997) by location were obtained from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation for Erie and Niagara Counties. Based on the monitor readings, prediction maps of TSP concentrations were generated with ArcGIS 8.0 (ESRI, Inc., Redlands, CA) using inverse distance squared weighted interpolation. Unconditional logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals. In postmenopausal women, exposure to high concentrations of TSP (>140 microg/m(3)) at birth was associated with an adjusted odds ratio of 2.42 (95% confidence interval, 0.97-6.09) compared with exposure to low concentrations (<84 microg/m(3)). However, in premenopausal women, where exposures were generally lower, the results were inconsistent with our hypothesis and in some instances were suggestive of a reduction in the risk of breast cancer. Our study suggests that exposure in early life to high levels of PAHs may increase the risk of postmenopausal breast cancer; however, other confounders related to geography cannot be ruled out.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Serum fructosamine and subsequent breast cancer risk: a nested case-control study in the ORDET prospective cohort study.

There is evidence that abnormal glucose metabolism may contribute to the risk of breast cancer. The measurement of markers of glucose metabolism could help to identify women at risk for breast cancer. Serum fructosamine is one such marker. In this study, we investigated whether prediagnostic serum fructosamine was associated with breast cancer. Between 1987 and 1992, 10,786 women ages 35 to 69 were recruited in Italy for a prospective study. Women with a history of cancer or on hormone therapy were excluded at baseline. Blood samples were collected after 12 hours fasting from all participants at recruitment. After 5.5 years of follow-up, 144 breast cancer cases were identified and four matched controls were selected from the cohort; serum fructosamine levels were measured in both groups at baseline. Adjusted odds ratios (OR) for the highest tertile of serum fructosamine compared to the lowest was 1.60 [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.95-2.73]. In premenopausal women, the OR was 1.58 (95% CI, 0.76-3.40) and in postmenopausal women, the OR was 1.60 (95% CI, 0.76-3.48). Serum fructosamine levels tended to be positively associated with breast cancer risk independent of menopausal status.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Lifetime total and beverage specific--alcohol intake and prostate cancer risk: a case-control study.

BACKGROUND: We investigated lifetime alcohol consumption and prostate cancer risk in a case-control study conducted in Buffalo, NY (1998-2001). METHODS: The study included 88 men, aged 45 to 85 years with incident, histologically-confirmed prostate cancer and 272 controls. We conducted extensive in-person interviews regarding lifetime alcohol consumption and other epidemiologic data. RESULTS: Prostate cancer risk was not associated with lifetime intake of total and beverage specific ethanol. In addition we found no association with number of drinks per day (average drinks per day over the lifetime) or drinks per drinking day (average drinks per day on drinking days only over the lifetime). However, we observed an inverse association with the total number of drinking years. Men in the lowest tertile of total drinking years had a two-fold prostate cancer risk than men in the highest tertile (OR 2.16, 95% CI 0.98-4.78, p for trend <0.05). CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that alcohol intake distribution across lifetime may play a more important role in prostate cancer etiology than total lifetime consumption.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2004

Endogenous sex hormones and subsequent breast cancer in premenopausal women.

Because of large intra-individual variation in hormone levels, few studies have investigated the relation of serum sex hormones to breast cancer (BC) in premenopausal women. We prospectively studied this relation, adjusting for timing of blood sampling within menstrual cycle. Premenopausal women (5,963), recruited to the Hormones and Diet in the Etiology of Breast Tumors (ORDET) cohort study, provided a blood sample in the 20-24th day of their menstrual cycle. After 5.2 years of follow-up, 65 histologically confirmed BC cases were identified and matched individually to 4 randomly selected controls. Sera, stored at -80 degrees C, were assayed blindly for dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, total and free testosterone (FT), androstenedione, androstanediol-glucoronide, progesterone, 17-OH-progesterone, sex hormone-binding globulin, follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH). Fifty-five cases had information for multivariate analyses. Compared to controls, BC cases had shorter cycles and intervals between blood sampling and bleeding, and lower LH and FSH. FT was significantly associated with BC risk: relative risk (RR; adjusted for age, body mass index and ovarian cycle variables) of highest vs. lowest tertile was 2.85 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.11-7.33, p for trend = 0.030]. Progesterone was inversely associated with adjusted RR for highest vs. lowest tertile of 0.40 (95% CI = 0.15-1.08, p for trend = 0.077), significantly so in women with regular menses, where adjusted RR was 0.12 (95% CI = 0.03-0.52, p for trend = 0.005). These findings support the hypothesis that ovarian hyperandrogenism associated with luteal insufficiency increases the risk of BC in premenopausal women.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Relationship of alcohol drinking pattern to risk of hypertension: a population-based study.

Epidemiological studies have demonstrated a positive relationship between heavy alcohol use and hypertension, but few studies have directly addressed the role of drinking pattern. This study was designed to investigate the association of current alcohol consumption and aspects of drinking pattern with hypertension risk in a sample of 2609 white men and women from western New York, aged 35 to 80 years, and free from other cardiovascular diseases. Hypertension was defined by systolic blood pressure > or =140 mm Hg or diastolic blood pressure > or =90 mm Hg or use of antihypertensive medication. Odds ratios (95% confidence intervals) were computed after adjustment for several covariates. Compared with lifetime abstainers, participants reporting drinking on a daily basis (1.75 [1.13 to 2.72]) or mostly without food (1.64 [1.08 to 2.51]) exhibited significantly higher risk of hypertension. When analyses were restricted to current drinkers, daily drinkers and participants consuming alcohol without food exhibited a significantly higher risk of hypertension compared with those drinking less than weekly (1.65 [1.18 to 2.30]) and those drinking mostly with food (1.49 [1.10 to 2.00]), respectively. After additional adjustment for the amount of alcohol consumed in the past 30 days, the results were follows: 0.90 (0.58 to 1.41) for daily drinkers and 1.41 (1.04 to 1.91) for drinkers without food. For predominant beverage preference, no consistent association with hypertension risk was found across the various types of beverages considered (beer, wine, and liquor). In conclusion, drinking outside meals appears to have a significant effect on hypertension risk independent of the amount of alcohol consumed.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Dietary lignan intakes and risk of pre- and postmenopausal breast cancer.

Lignans are plant compounds metabolized in the mammalian gut to produce the phytoestrogens enterolactone and enterodiol. Because estrogens have been linked to breast cancer etiology, lignans could affect breast cancer risk through modulation of endogenous estrogen metabolism or competitive inhibition with estrogen receptors. We examined breast cancer risk and dietary lignan intake in a population-based case-control study of 1,122 women with primary, incident, histologically confirmed breast cancer and 2,036 controls frequency matched to cases on age and county of residence as part of the Western New York Exposures and Breast Cancer (WEB) Study. Diet was assessed with a self-administered 104-item food frequency questionnaire and other relevant data were collected by detailed in-person interviews. Lignans were expressed as the sum of the dietary precursors secoisolariciresinol and matairesinol. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated by unconditional logistic regression, adjusting for age, total energy and other breast cancer risk factors. Premenopausal women in the highest quartile of dietary lignan intake had reduced breast cancer risk (OR = 0.66; 95% CI = 0.44-0.98). No association was observed between lignan intakes and postmenopausal breast cancer. Our results suggest that dietary lignans may be important in the etiology of breast cancer, particularly among premenopausal women.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Circulating levels of sex steroid hormones and risk of endometrial cancer in postmenopausal women.

Experimental and epidemiological data support a role for sex steroid hormones in the pathogenesis of endometrial cancer. The associations of pre-diagnostic blood concentrations of estradiol, estrone, testosterone, androstenedione, DHEAS and SHBG with endometrial cancer risk were investigated. A case-control study was nested within 3 cohorts in New York (USA), Umeå (Sweden) and Milan (Italy). Cases were 124 postmenopausal women with invasive endometrial cancer. For each case, 2 controls were selected, matching the case on cohort, age and date of recruitment. Only postmenopausal women who did not use exogenous hormones at the time of blood donation were included. Odds ratios (OR) and their 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated by conditional logistic regression. ORs (95% CI) for endometrial cancer for quartiles with the highest hormone levels, relative to the lowest were as follows: 4.13 (1.76-9.72), p(trend) = 0.0008 for estradiol, 3.67 (1.71-7.88), p(trend) = 0.0007 for estrone, 2.15 (1.05-4.40), p(trend) = 0.04 for androstenedione, 1.74 (0.88-3.46), p(trend) = 0.06 for testosterone, 2.90 (1.42-5.90), p(trend) = 0.002 for DHEAS and 0.46 (0.20-1.05), p(trend) = 0.01 for SHBG after adjustment for body mass index, use of oral contraceptives and hormone replacement therapy. The results of our multicenter prospective study showed a strong direct association of circulating estrogens, androgens and an inverse association of SHBG levels with endometrial cancer in postmenopausal women. The effect of elevated androstenedione and testosterone levels on disease risk seems to be mediated mainly through their conversion to estrogens, although an independent effect of androgens on tumor growth cannot be ruled out, in particular in the years close to diagnosis.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Prediagnostic levels of C-peptide, IGF-I, IGFBP -1, -2 and -3 and risk of endometrial cancer.

Conditions related to chronic hyperinsulinemia, such as obesity, noninsulin dependent diabetes mellitus and polycystic ovary syndrome, are associated with an increased risk of endometrial cancer. Elevated plasma IGF-I and decreased levels of IGF-binding proteins have been shown to be associated with increased risk of several cancer types that are frequent in affluent societies. We investigated for the first time in a prospective study the association of pre-diagnostic blood concentrations of C-peptide (a marker of pancreatic insulin production), IGF-I, IGFBP-1, -2 and -3 with endometrial cancer risk. A case-control study was nested within 3 cohorts in New York (USA), Umeå (Sweden) and Milan (Italy). It included 166 women with primary invasive endometrial cancer and 315 matched controls, of which 44 case and 78 control subjects were premenopausal at recruitment. Endometrial cancer risk increased with increasing levels of C-peptide (ptrend = 0.0002), up to an odds ratio (OR) of 4.76 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.91-11.8] for the highest quintile. This association remained after adjustment for BMI and other confounders [OR for the top quintile = 4.40 (1.65-11.7)]. IGFBP-1 levels were inversely related to endometrial cancer [ptrend = 0.002; OR in the upper quintile = 0.30 (0.15-0.62)], but the association was weakened and lost statistical significance after adjustment for confounders [ptrend = 0.06; OR in the upper quintile = 0.49 (0.22-1.07)]. Risk was unrelated to levels of IGF-I, IGFBP-2 and IGFBP-3. Chronic hyperinsulinemia, as reflected by increased circulating C-peptide, is associated with increased endometrial cancer risk. Decrease in the prevalence of chronic hyperinsulinemia, through changes in lifestyle or medication, is expected to prevent endometrial cancer.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Body fat distribution, relative weight, and liver enzyme levels: a population-based study.

Regional body fat distribution may represent an independent risk factor for several conditions, especially metabolic and cardiovascular diseases; recent findings have shown that abdominal fat accumulation can be an independent predictor of hepatic steatosis. Very few studies, mostly using selected clinical samples, have focused on the relationship between indices of abdominal visceral fat accumulation and the most commonly used biochemical liver tests, such as alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT). The aim of the present study was to evaluate the relation between central fat accumulation, as assessed by abdominal height, relative weight, as determined by body mass index (BMI), and liver function tests (ALT, AST, and GGT) in a random sample of 2,704 residents of Erie and Niagara Counties in New York State, 35-80 years of age and free from known hepatic disease. Multiple linear regression models were used, with liver enzymes as dependent variables with abdominal height and BMI as independent variables, and the inclusion of several covariates (age, race, education, smoking status, pack-years of smoking, drinking status, and total ounces of ethanol in the past 30 days). Abdominal height was consistently a better correlate of ALT and GGT levels than BMI in both sexes. In addition, abdominal height was the most powerful independent predictor of ALT in both sexes as well as of GGT among women. In conclusion, these findings support a role for central adiposity independent from BMI in predicting increased levels of hepatic enzymes, likely as a result of unrecognized fatty liver.

Abdomen↗

PubMed2004

Geographic clustering of residence in early life and subsequent risk of breast cancer (United States).

OBJECTIVE: This study focused on geographic clustering of breast cancer based on residence in early life and identified spatio-temporal clustering of cases and controls. METHODS: Data were drawn from the WEB study (Western New York Exposures and Breast Cancer Study), a population-based case-control study of incident, pathologically confirmed breast cancer (1996-2001) in Erie and Niagara counties. Controls were frequency-matched to cases on age, race, and county of residence. All cases and controls used in the study provided lifetime residential histories. The k-function difference between cases and controls was used to identify spatial clustering patterns of residence in early life. RESULTS: We found that the evidence for clustered residences at birth and at menarche was stronger than that for first birth or other time periods in adult life. Residences for pre-menopausal cases were more clustered than for controls at the time of birth and menarche. We also identified the size and geographic location of birth and menarche clusters in the study area, and found increased breast cancer risk for pre-menopausal women whose residence was within the cluster compared to those living elsewhere at the time of birth. CONCLUSION: This study provides evidence that early environmental exposures may be related to breast cancer risk, especially for pre-menopausal women.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Serum iron, copper and zinc concentrations and risk of cancer mortality in US adults.

PURPOSE: To examine the prospective association of serum iron, copper, and zinc with cancer mortality. METHODS: The study sample included 3000 men and 3244 women free from cancer at baseline who participated in the Second National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Vital status at follow-up was identified by the Social Security Administration's death file and the National Death Index. Iron, transferrin saturation (TS), copper, and zinc were categorized into 4 levels using the 10th, 50th, and 90th percentiles for cutoffs. Relative risks (RRs) were derived from the proportional hazard models after adjustment for a number of potential confounders. RESULTS: Three hundred seven cancer deaths (ICD-9 140-195, 199-208) were identified during 83,664.4 person-years of follow-up. Cancer mortality per 1000 person-years was 3.7 (4.7 for men and 2.8 for women). For men and women combined, the adjusted RRs (95% confidence intervals, CI) for the four levels were 0.96 (0.57-1.61), 1.00 (reference), 1.12 (0.80-1.58), 1.86 (1.07-3.22) for iron; 0.97 (0.56-1.70), 1.00 (reference), 1.36 (0.99-1.87), 1.82 (1.10-3.02) for TS; 0.76 (0.44-1.31), 1.00 (reference), 1.10 (0.77-1.58), 1.89 (1.07-3.32) for copper; and 0.75 (0.50-1.13), 1.00 (reference), 0.64 (0.47-0.88), 0.84 (0.53-1.33) for zinc. When the exposures were analyzed as continuous variables, the adjusted RRs (CI) were 1.66 (1.03-2.68) for 100 microg/dl iron increase, 1.17 (1.01-1.36) for 10% TS increase, 1.98 (1.12-3.50) for 100 microg/dl copper increase, and 0.57 (0.16-1.96) for 100 microg/dl zinc increase. Sex differences in the adjusted RRs for iron, TS, and copper were suggestive. CONCLUSION: People with higher serum iron, TS, or copper concentrations had an increased risk of dying from cancer.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Differential effects of alcohol drinking pattern on liver enzymes in men and women.

BACKGROUND: Increasing evidence suggests that drinking pattern may have powerful implications for health; however, very few studies have focused on the association between drinking pattern and risk of alcoholic liver damage. This study was aimed at examining the association of gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT), aspartate aminotransferase, and alanine aminotransferase with current alcohol consumption and with some aspects of drinking pattern (e.g., drinking frequency during the week and in relation to food consumption). METHODS: A cross-sectional analysis was conducted of a random sample of 2943 white residents of Erie and Niagara Counties in New York State who were 35 to 80 years of age and free from known hepatic disease. RESULTS: The most significant associations were found for GGT; in both sexes, average levels were significantly higher in current and former drinkers compared with lifetime abstainers. In analyses based on quartiles of alcohol consumption, only participants in the two top quartiles showed significantly elevated enzymes compared with both lifetime abstainers and participants in other quartiles. For drinking pattern, there was evidence of sex-specific associations. In men, daily drinkers showed the highest levels of GGT, whereas in women, the highest level of GGT was observed in weekend drinkers. Women (but not men) who consumed alcohol without food exhibited higher levels of GGT compared with women who consumed alcoholic beverages in relation to food. CONCLUSIONS: These findings support the hypothesis that, in addition to amount, drinking pattern may affect liver function and that differences exist between sexes with regard to the effect of drinking pattern on liver function and potential liver damage.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Drinking pattern and risk of non-fatal myocardial infarction: a population-based case-control study.

AIMS: Alcohol consumption has been associated with a reduced risk of heart disease incidence and mortality. However, most studies have focused on an average volume per specific time period and have paid little attention to the pattern of drinking. The aim of this study was to examine the association between various drinking patterns and myocardial infarction (MI). DESIGN: A population-based case-control study. METHODS: Participants were 427 white males with incident MI and 905 healthy white male controls (age 35-69 years) selected randomly from two Western New York counties. During computer-assisted interviews detailed information was collected regarding patterns of alcohol consumption during the 12-24 months prior to interview (controls) or MI (cases). FINDINGS: Compared to life-time abstainers, adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for non-current and current drinkers were 0.66 (0.31-1.39) and 0.50 (0.24-1.02), respectively. Daily drinkers exhibited a significantly lower OR (0.41) compared to life-time abstainers. Participants who drank mainly without food had an OR of 1.49 (0.96-2.31) compared to those who drank mainly with food and 0.62 (0.28-1.37) compared to life-time abstainers. Men who reported drinking only at weekends had a significantly greater MI risk [1.91; (1.21-3.01)] compared to men who drank less than once/week, but not compared to life-time abstainers [0.91 (0.40-2.07)]. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that patterns of alcohol use have important cardiovascular health implications.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Intercellular communication and human hepatocellular carcinoma.

We have previously reported that gap junction-mediated intercellular communication (GJIC) can be restored in junctionally deficient human prostate epithelial cells, also suggesting that GJIC activity is regulated by estrogen. In the present work, we report studies on sex steroid regulation of GJIC and proliferative activity in both nontumoral (Chang liver, CL) and malignant (HepG2, Huh7) human liver cells. Junctional activity and liver cell growth were measured using the scrape-loading/dye-transfer (SL/DT) and the MTS assay, respectively. Using the SL/DT, only Huh7 cells exhibited a moderate degree of junctional activity in basic conditions, while neither CL nor HepG2 cells showed functional GJIC. Under exactly the same experimental approach used for prostate studies, we observed that, once again, both estrogen (either estradiol or estrone) and FK induce a significant increase of GJIC in Huh7 cells, while exposure of HepG2 cells to FK produces only a limited rise of junctional activity in this cell line. However, estrogen induced a significant increase and reduction of the proliferative activity of CL and Huh7 cells, respectively, while growth of HepG2 cells was not affected. While the above evidence suggests that estrogens are primarily implicated in growth regulation and communication of both prostate and liver epithelial cells, it also implies that compounds able to restore GJIC in junctionally deficient cells or prevent its disruption in junctionally proficient cells may be used for development of new strategies in the prevention and/or treatment of several human malignancies, including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Carcinoma, Hepatocellular↗

PubMed2004

The role of endogenous hormones in the etiology and prevention of breast cancer: the epidemiological evidence.

Breast cancer is the most common cause of cancer death in women worldwide. Rates vary about fivefold around the world, but they are increasing in regions that until recently had low rates of the disease. Despite the numerous uncertainties surrounding the etiology of breast cancer, intensive epidemiological, clinical, and genetic studies have identified a number of biologic and social traits as risk factors associated with it. Principal among them are the evidence of BRCA1 and BRCA2 susceptibility genes, familial history of breast cancer, age, higher socioeconomic status, ionizing radiation, tallness in adult life, alcohol consumption, and a variety of hormonal and metabolic factors. Among the hormonal influences, a relevant etiological function has been ascribed to unopposed exposure to elevated levels of estrogens and androgens. In addition, new epidemiological evidence indicates that among the metabolic factors, glucose metabolism, hyperinsulinemic insulin resistance, and insulin-like growth factor bioavailability may also play a role in breast cancer. These endocrine and metabolic factors may represent future targets for breast cancer prevention.

Aged↗

PubMed2004

Dietary patterns and risk of breast cancer in the ORDET cohort.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between dietary patterns and risk of developing breast cancer in an Italian cohort. Women volunteers were recruited from 1987 to 1992 from residents in Varese province, northern Italy, an area covered by a cancer registry. Participants completed a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire, and anthropometric and other data were collected systematically. Using nutritional data from 8984 women with an average follow up of 9.5 years and 207 incident cases of breast cancer, we conducted an exploratory factor analysis to identify major dietary patterns. Four dietary patterns, which explained 30% of the variance, emerged: salad vegetables (mainly consisting of raw vegetables and olive oil); western (mainly consisting of potatoes, red meat, eggs and butter); canteen (pasta and tomato sauce); and prudent (cooked vegetables, pulses, and fish, with negative loading on wines and spirits). After adjustment for potential confounders, only the salad vegetables pattern was associated with significantly lower (34-35%) breast cancer incidence (RR = 0.66, CI(95%) = 0.47+/-0.95 comparing highest with lowest tertile) with a significant linear trend (P = 0.016). Women with body mass index <25 had an even greater risk reduction in the highest tertile of the salad vegetables pattern (>50% less risk than the lowest tertile, RR = 0.39, CI(95%) = 0.22-0.69) with a significant trend (P = 0.001); whereas women with body mass index > or =25 had no protective effect for the consumption of salad vegetables. These findings suggest that a diet rich in raw vegetables and olive oil protects against breast cancer.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Dietary intake of conjugated linoleic acids and risk of premenopausal and postmenopausal breast cancer, Western New York Exposures and Breast Cancer Study (WEB Study).

Specific fatty acids may have differential effects on breast cancer etiology. Animal studies have suggested that conjugated linoleic acids (CLA), a group of fatty acids found predominantly in dairy products and the meat of ruminants, have potent anticarcinogenic properties. We examined breast cancer risk and dietary CLA intake among 1,122 women with primary, incident, histologically confirmed breast cancer and 2,036 controls frequency matched to cases by age, race, and county of residence. Diet was assessed with a self-administered 104-item food frequency questionnaire and other relevant data were collected by detailed in-person interviews. We examined risk with intake of total CLAs and the 9c,11t-18:2 isomer of CLA (9,11 CLA). Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were estimated by unconditional logistic regression, adjusting for age, the residual of fat adjusted for energy, and other breast cancer risk factors. No association was observed between intakes of total CLA or 9,11 CLA and overall risk of premenopausal or postmenopausal breast cancer. We observed little association between CLA intakes and risk of estrogen receptor (ER)-negative or ER-positive tumors, although, compared with premenopausal women in the lowest quartile of 9,11 CLA intake, those in the highest quartile had a marginally significant reduction in risk of having an ER-negative tumor (odds ratio, 0.40; 95% confidence interval, 0.16-1.01). Our findings suggest that, although CLA intake was not related to overall breast cancer risk, there may be associations with tumor biology at least among premenopausal women.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Greater hepatic vulnerability after alcohol intake in African Americans compared with Caucasians: a population-based study.

AIMS OF THE STUDY: In the last 40 years, African Americans have experienced higher age-adjusted liver cirrhosis mortality rates than whites. Alcohol use has been hypothesized to be the likely determinant of this disparity in liver disease mortality. This study was aimed at evaluating racial variations in common biomarkers of liver injury, such as gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT), aspartate amino transferase (AST) and alanine amino transferase (ALT), by categories of drinking status and levels of current alcohol use. METHODS: A cross-sectional analysis of a general population sample of 3304 residents of Erie and Niagara counties in New York State, 35-80 years of age and free from known hepatic disease, stratified by racial group (African-American and white). RESULTS: Concentrations of GGT were higher for African-Americans than for whites in all categories of drinking status (lifetime abstainers, former and current drinkers) after adjustment for potential confounders (age, sex, education, smoking, and body mass index). However, differences in enzyme mean values between the two racial groups were consistently larger among current drinkers than for either lifetime abstainers or former drinkers. In analyses based on tertiles of alcohol consumption in the last 30 days, differences in GGT mean values between the two races tended to amplify with increasing amounts of consumption. CONCLUSIONS: These findings seem to support the hypothesis of greater sensitivity to alcohol-induced hepatotoxicity among African-Americans than for whites.

Adult↗