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An analysis into the association between diet, BMI, diabetes, lifestyle factors and patient demographics on thyroid cancer incidence and mortality.

Principal Investigator
Name
Tharakeswari Selvakumar
Degrees
MD, PHD
Institution
Rutgers New Jersey Medical School
Position Title
Resident
Email
About this CDAS Project
Study
PLCO (Learn more about this study)
Project ID
PLCO-795
Initial CDAS Request Approval
Jun 21, 2021
Title
An analysis into the association between diet, BMI, diabetes, lifestyle factors and patient demographics on thyroid cancer incidence and mortality.
Summary
As per the SEER 9 cancer registry, about 77000 patients were diagnosed with thyroid cancer between 1974-2013 resulting in ~2000 deaths in that period. Thyroid cancer incidence has also increased by 3.6% per year during 1979-2013 [1]. Recent evidence suggests that lifestyle related factors such as diet, exercise, tobacco/alcohol use are associated with increased incidence and mortality in many types of cancers [2, 3]. While there is emerging evidence that diet can influence thyroid cancer risk [4], there is still a paucity of studies that investigate the association between lifestyle factors, diet, BMI and other comorbidities such as preexisting diabetes with thyroid cancer. Data recorded in the questionnaires in the PLCO database will be valuable to our research which aims to identify potential associations between these often overlooked aspects of patient history with thyroid cancer risk. Given that many of these factors can be reversed, studies such as ours that help identify associations with the above aspects of patient profiles with cancer risk will also inform targeted preventive measures to reduce the incidence of thyroid cancer.
References:
1.
Trends in Thyroid Cancer Incidence and Mortality in the United States, 1974-2013.
Lim H, Devesa SS, Sosa JA, Check D, Kitahara CM. JAMA. 2017 Apr 4;317(13):1338-1348. doi: 10.1001/jama.2017.2719. PMID: 28362912

2.
Lifestyle and cancer risk.
Katzke VA, Kaaks R, Kühn T. Cancer J. 2015 Mar-Apr;21(2):104-10. doi: 10.1097/PPO.0000000000000101. PMID: 25815850


3.
Effect of diet on mortality and cancer recurrence among cancer survivors: a systematic review and meta-analysis of cohort studies.
Schwedhelm C, Boeing H, Hoffmann G, Aleksandrova K, Schwingshackl L. Nutr Rev. 2016 Dec;74(12):737-748. doi: 10.1093/nutrit/nuw045. PMID: 27864535

4.
Ketogenic diet combined with antioxidant N-acetylcysteine inhibits tumor growth in a mouse model of anaplastic thyroid cancer.
Aggarwal A, Yuan Z, Barletta JA, Lorch JH, Nehs MA. Surgery. 2020 Jan;167(1):87-93. doi: 10.1016/j.surg.2019.06.042. Epub 2019 Sep 12. PMID: 31521320
Aims

Our research aims to answer the following questions.

1. Are there aspects of patient demographics that are associated with increased risk of thyroid cancer incidence?
2. Is elevated BMI associated with an increased incidence rate of thyroid cancer?
3. Do preexisting diabetes, other medical conditions and any medication use demonstrate significant association with increased risk of thyroid cancer?
4. Do lifestyle factors such as smoking history and level of physical activity impact thyroid cancer incidence rates?
5. Are there any dietary specific factors that correlate with an increase or decrease in risk of thyroid cancer?
6. Do any of the above factors correlate with increased or decreased mortality among patients diagnosed with thyroid cancer?

Collaborators

none