Data from Baseline Oral Microbiome and All-cancer Incidence in a Cohort of Nonsmoking Mexican American Women

Abstract

<div>Abstract<p>Given the increasing evidence that the oral microbiome is involved in obesity, diabetes, and cancer risk, we investigated baseline oral microbiota profiles in relation to all-cancer incidence among nonsmoking women enrolled in a Texas cohort of first- and second-generation immigrants of Mexican origin. We characterized the 16Sv4 rDNA microbiome in oral mouthwash samples collected at baseline from a representative subset of 305 nonsmoking women, ages 20–75 years. We evaluated within- (alpha) and between-sample (beta) diversity by incident cancer status and applied linear discriminant analysis (LDA) effect size analysis to assess differentially abundant taxa. Diversity and candidate taxa in relation to all-cancer incidence were evaluated in multivariable-adjusted Cox regression models. Over 8.8 median years of follow-up, 31 incident cancer cases were identified and verified. Advanced age, greater acculturation, and cardiometabolic risk factors were associated with all-cancer incidence. Higher alpha diversity (age-adjusted <i>P</i><sub>difference</sub> < 0.01) and distinct biological communities (<i>P</i><sub>difference</sub> = 0.002) were observed by incident cancer status. Each unit increase in the Shannon diversity index yielded >8-fold increase in all-cancer and obesity-related cancer risk [multivariable-adjusted HR (95% confidence interval), 8.11 (3.14–20.94) and 10.72 (3.30–34.84), respectively] with similar findings for the inverse Simpson index. <i>Streptococcus</i> was enriched among women who did not develop cancer, while <i>Fusobacterium, Prevotella, Mogibacterium, Campylobacter, Lachnoanaerobaculum, Dialister</i>, and <i>Atopobium</i> were higher among women who developed cancer (LDA score ≥ 3; q-value < 0.01). This initial study of oral microbiota and overall cancer risk in nonsmoking Mexican American women suggests the readily accessible oral microbiota as a promising biomarker.</p>Prevention Relevance:<p>Mexican American women suffer a disproportionate burden of chronic health conditions that increase cancer risk. Few investigations of the microbiome, a key determinant of host health, have been conducted among this group. Oral microbiota profiles may provide early and accessible cancer biomarker data on invasive bacteria or community disruptions.</p></div>