Highlights of This Issue

Abstract

Because both smoking and excess body weight are major preventable risk factors for premature death, Meyer and colleagues analyzed the single and combined associations with site-specific cancer mortality. The study population comprised 35,784 men and women who participated in population-based health surveys in Switzerland. Heavy smoking (≥20 cigarettes/day) was associated with increased mortality due to cancer of the lung, upper aerodigestive tract, pancreas, bladder, liver, and the total of remaining sites. Obesity was associated with higher risk of dying from cancer of the liver and the female genital tract. Smoking was a much stronger risk factor for cancer than was excess body weight. This study supports recommendations for obese persons to quit smoking despite potential postcessation weight gain.Katz and colleagues performed cross-sectional telephone interviews to evaluate if women living in Appalachia were completing three cancer screening tests (mammography, Pap test, and colorectal cancer test). The authors report that fewer than 10% of women ages 51–75 were within guidelines for three cancer screening tests. Participants with higher incomes and conditions requiring regular medical visits were more likely to be within guidelines for all three screening tests. The low participation rate for cancer test uptake among women in Appalachia Ohio illustrates the need for innovative interventions to improve these rates.Global trends in female breast cancer incidence and mortality estimates were obtained from GLOBOCAN 2012. DeSantis and colleagues analyzed trends from 1993 onward using incidence data from 39 countries from the International Agency for Research on Cancer and mortality data from 57 countries from the World Health Organization. The authors report that in nine countries, mainly in Northern/Western Europe, breast cancer incidence increased and breast cancer mortality decreased. In contrast, incidence and death rates both increased in Colombia, Ecuador, and Japan and death rates increased in Brazil, Egypt, Guatemala, Kuwait, Mauritius, and Moldova. Awareness about the benefits of early breast cancer detection and improved access to treatment must be prioritized in order to successfully implement breast cancer control programs.Findings from studies examining associations of serum retinol and carotenoids with prostate cancer risk have been inconsistent. In this case–control study nested in the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial, Nash and colleagues evaluated associations of serum retinol and carotenoids with total, low-, and high-grade prostate cancer risk. Serum retinol concentrations were associated with increased risk of total prostate cancer and high-grade prostate cancer in the placebo arm of the trial only. Also in the placebo arm, there was a moderate positive association of α-carotene with risk of total prostate cancer. Men with higher levels of serum retinol and α-carotene may be at increased risk for prostate cancer.