Highlights of This Issue

Abstract

Studies suggest that allergies are associated with reduced pancreatic cancer risk. To explore this relationship, Cotterchio and colleagues conducted a case–control study where pancreatic cancer cases identified through the Ontario Cancer Registry were evaluated using questionnaires focused on lifetime allergy history, allergy medications, and pancreatic cancer history. The authors found that hay fever was associated with a significant reduction in pancreatic cancer risk. Also, dust/mold allergy and animal allergies were associated with reduced pancreatic cancer risks. These findings support that certain allergies are associated with reduced pancreatic cancer risk.Men with Lynch syndrome, who carry DNA mismatch repair (MMR) gene mutations, may be at heightened risk of prostate cancer. To explore this, Ryan and colleagues performed a meta-analysis and examined MMR-deficiency status and prostate cancer in men with MMR gene mutations. The authors report that 73% of prostate cancer tumors in mutation carriers were MMR-deficient, which equates to carriers having a 3.67-fold increased risk of prostate cancer. The authors estimated a 2.28-fold increased risk of prostate cancer for all men from mutation-carrying families. This report supports consideration of prostate cancer as part of Lynch syndrome.Lifestyle factors that affect prognosis after treatment for ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) breast cancer were examined by Hart McLaughlin and colleagues. The authors report on the association between body mass index (BMI), physical activity, and alcohol intake and risk of a second breast cancer diagnosis among DCIS survivors in the Wisconsin In Situ Cohort. Over a 6.7-year follow-up period, a significant trend of increasing risk of a second diagnosis was found with post-diagnosis alcohol intake. Among premenopausal women, increased pre-diagnosis BMI was associated with a reduced risk of a second diagnosis.Imbalances in tryptophan metabolism have been linked to several cancers. Chuang and colleagues conducted a nested case–control study within the EPIC cohort and measured circulating levels of tryptophan and tryptophan metabolites and their association with lung cancer. The study found that both tryptophan and the kynurenine/tryptophan ratio were associated with lung cancer risk. This work supports that biomarkers of tryptophan metabolism are associated with subsequent lung cancer risk.