(from the ECNIS science communication office)

A recent publication in the British Medical Journal by a team led by ECNIS researcher Paolo Boffetta (Tea drinking habits and oesophageal cancer in a high risk area in northern Iran: population based case-control study. BMJ. 2009 (338) 876-879) reported on a possible explanation for the very high incidence of oesophageal cancer which is observed in the Northern Iran region of Golestan. This publication attracted the following editorial comment in the same journal (available at BMJ. 2009;338:b929).

(from the ECNIS science communication office)

A team of ECNIS researchers has reported that smoking cannabis can damage human DNA in ways that could potentially increase the risk of developing cancer (Singh R, Sandhu J, Kaur B, Juren T, Steward WP, Segerbäck D, Farmer PB. Evaluation of the DNA Damaging Potential of Cannabis Cigarette Smoke by the Determination of Acetaldehyde Derived N(2)-Ethyl-2'-deoxyguanosine Adducts. Chem Res Toxicol. 2009 May 18).  The study used a new technique of highly sensitive liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry to look at the formation of a cancer-causing compound in calf thymus DNA that had been exposed to cannabis cigarette smoke in vitro. Their findings indicated that cannabis does damage DNA under laboratory conditions.

(from the ECNIS science communication office)

Two new studies have been published by ECNIS researchers on the relationship between diet and the risk for breast and colorectal cancer, two of the commonest types of cancer. Both studies were based on the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort, a large pan-European study in the context of which, starting approximately 15 years ago, information on dietary habits, as well as a blood sample, were collected from about half a million healthy individuals. Study participants who have since developed different types of cancer have been identified, and the information on their dietary habits is being analysed and compared with that of comparable donors (controls) who did not develop cancer. This type of study, known as nested case-control study, allows researchers to examine the influence of nutrition on the probability of someone developing cancer in the future.

Ethics is a very important issue for epidemiological studies. A lot of relevant information can be found in the supplement "Ethics and communications in human biomonitoring: European perspectives" of the Environmental Health Journal (June 2008).
This supplement includes scientific articles on human biomonitoring and ethical issues coming from a Workshop organized by ESBIO Project, on Ethics and Communication, which was held in Copenhagen (March 2007).
The full content of the supplement with these articles can be found here.

One of the goals of cancer biomarker research is to discover markers which can identify individuals or populations which are at higher risk of developing cancer in the future. The only biomarker which has so far been shown to have this predictive ability is a kind of genetic damage known as chromosomal aberrations, measured in blood lymphocytes. The cancer- predictive ability of chromosomal aberrations received further support from a recently published study of a multicentre collaborative team including ECNIS researchers Paolo Boffetta (International Agency for Research in Cancer, Lyon), Hannu Norppa (Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, Helsinki) and Roel Vermeulen (Institute for Risk Assessment Studies, Utrecht), based on data from 6,430 individuals from 5 regions in Central and Eastern Europe.

The ability of another type of genetic damage, micronuclei, to predict future cancer risk has been under investigation. Micronuclei have the advantage, relative to chromosomal aberrations, of being easier to analyse. Recently the result of a large multicentre study examining the cancer predictive ability of micronuclei measured in blood lymphocytes have been published. Using data obtained from over 6,700 subjects in 10 countries, researchers including ECNIS partners Micheline Kirsch-Volders (Free University of Brussels) and Hannu Norppa (Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, Helsinki), found that persons with medium or high levels of micronuclei had a higher probability of developing cancer, especially gastroinstestinal or urogenital cancer, suggesting that micronuclei may be a valuable biomarker of cancer risk with potential for use in population surveillance and cancer prevention activities.

Paolo Boffetta. Human cancer from environmental pollutants: the epidemiological evidence. Mutation Research. 2006; 608(2):157-62.
An increased risk of mesothelioma has been reported among individuals experiencing residential exposure to asbestos, while results for lung cancer are less consistent. Several studies have reported an increased risk of lung cancer risk from outdoor air pollution: on the basis of the results of the largest study, the proportion of lung cancers attributable to urban air pollution in Europe can be as high as 10.7%. A causal association has been established between second-hand tobacco smoking and lung cancer, which may be responsible for 1.6% of lung cancers. Radon is another carcinogen present in indoor air, which may be responsible for 4.5% of lung cancers. An increased risk of bladder might be due to water chlorination by-products. The available evidence on cancer risk following exposure to other environmental pollutants, including, pesticides, dioxins and electro-magnetic fields, is inconclusive.

H. Doucas, G. Garcea, C.P. Neal, M.M. Manson, D.P. Berry. Chemoprevention of Pancreatic Cancer: A Review of the Molecular Pathways Involved, and Evidence for the Potential for Chemoprevention. Pancreatology. 2006; 6(5):429-439.
Background: Pancreatic cancer has a poor prognosis. The use of drugs or natural agents which inhibit or slow down tumour growth therefore has important potential in the development of future therapies. Methods: A literature search of the PubMed and ISI Web of Science databases was undertaken to review the current data available on the alterations in signalling pathways found in pancreatic carcinogenesis, in order to identify sites that could be targeted by chemopreventive agents. Several agents of particular relevance to pancreatic cancer were identified, and their possible mechanisms of action reviewed. Results: Chemopreventive agents such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, green tea constituents, and antioxidants have been shown to target various steps in intracellular signalling pathways, particularly those controlling cell proliferation and survival. Work on cell lines and animal models has shown that some of these agents may be able to modulate the growth of pancreatic tumours. Initial clinical trials of some chemopreventives in pancreatic cancer have been undertaken, and have yielded mixed results, prompting the need for further studies. Conclusion: As the molecular pathology of pancreatic cancer becomes better understood, sites of action of chemopreventive substances have been uncovered. Several agents have shown promising results by their ability to inhibit pancreatic carcinogenesis in laboratory studies. If these effects can be successfully translated into human studies then these agents may prove to be valuable adjuvant therapies in the future.