Cigarette smoking may increase the risk of developing follicular lymphoma but does not seem to affect risk of the other non-Hodgkin lymphoma subtypes we examined. Future research is needed to determine the biological mechanism responsible for our subtype-specific results.

The role of diet in cancer is a major public health issue Foods associated with a low risk of cancer are those typically included in the so-called Mediterranean diet, which is also associated with low mortality rates from cardiovascular disease. Implementing such a diet would involve increasing the consumption of fruits, vegetables, cereals, whole-grain foods and fish, while reducing the intake of refined carbohydrates and red meat. In addition, olive oil should replace saturated fats. Omega-3 fatty acids found in fish inhibit the growth in vitro of colon, breast and prostate cancers. Fibre can bind bile acids, which produce carcinogenic metabolites, and fermented fibre produces volatile fatty acids that can protect against colon cancer. It has been hypothesized that the anti-cancer actions of olive oil may relate to the ability of its mono-unsaturated fatty acid, oleic acid, to regulate oncogenes.

HCC mortality remains largely variable across Europe. Favorable trends were observed in several European countries mainly over the last decade, particularly in women and in young adults.

Because of their several biological activities, flavonoids may have an important role in explaining the protective effects of vegetables, fruit, and, possibly, tea against cancer. The potential relation between flavonoids and colorectal cancer risk was investigated using data from a multicentric Italian case-control study, including 1,953 cases of colorectal cancers (1,225 colon cancers and 728 rectal cancers) and 4,154 hospital controls admitted for acute nonneoplastic diseases. We have applied recently published data on the composition of foods and beverages, in terms of six principal classes of flavonoids, on dietary information collected through a validated food-frequency questionnaire. Odds ratios (OR) were estimated by multiple logistic regression models, including terms for sex, age, study center, family history of colorectal cancer, education, alcohol consumption, body mass index, physical activity, and energy intake. A reduced risk of colorectal cancer was found for increasing intake of isoflavones (OR, 0.76, for the highest versus the lowest quintile, P(trend) = 0.001), anthocyanidins (OR, 0.67, P(trend) < 0.001), flavones (OR, 0.78, P(trend) = 0.004), and flavonols (OR, 0.64, P(trend) < 0.001). No significant association was found for flavan-3-ols (OR, 0.98), flavanones (OR, 0.96), and total flavonoids (OR, 0.97). The estimates did not substantially differ for colon and rectal cancers, as well as in strata of sex, age, and body mass index. The findings of this large study provide support for an inverse association of selected classes of flavonoids with colorectal cancer risk.

Scanty information is available on the relation between nevus count on specific anatomic areas and the total body surface, particularly in children. The authors analyzed this issue by using data from a uniquely large study conducted in 1997 on 3,406 schoolchildren (1,746 boys and 1,660 girls) aged 13-14 years in 13 cities from northern, central, and southern Italy. Children were examined by trained dermatologists who counted melanocytic nevi (>or=2 mm in diameter) on 19 different anatomic sites. Overall, the mean number of nevi was 17.3 (18.6 in boys and 15.8 in girls). The adjusted correlation coefficients (r) with number of nevi on the whole body were 0.74 for head and neck, 0.83 for anterior and 0.84 for posterior trunk, and 0.88 for upper and 0.80 for lower limbs. With reference to single anatomic sites, the best predictor of total nevus count was the lateral arms (r=0.80), overall and in strata of sex and pigmentary characteristics. This large study provides definite evidence that examining the upper limbs only, particularly the lateral arms, is a practical and suitable tool for predicting total nevus count in children.

Editorials| August 18 2005 Tobacco and Skin Disease Subject Area: Dermatology , Immunology and Allergy Carlo La Vecchia; Carlo La Vecchia aIstituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche 'Mario Negri', bIstituto di Statistica Medica e Biometria, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milano, and Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar Silvano Gallus; Silvano Gallus aIstituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche 'Mario Negri', Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar Luigi Naldi Luigi Naldi cCoordinating Center, Italian Group for Epidemiological Research in Dermatology, Department of Dermatology, Ospedali Riuniti, Bergamo, Italy Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar Dermatology (2005) 211 (2): 81–83. https://doi.org/10.1159/000086433 Article history Published Online: August 18 2005 Content Tools Views Icon Views Article contents Figures & tables Video Audio Supplementary Data Peer Review Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Cite Icon Cite Search Site Citation Carlo La Vecchia, Silvano Gallus, Luigi Naldi; Tobacco and Skin Disease. Dermatology 1 August 2005; 211 (2): 81–83. https://doi.org/10.1159/000086433 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentAll JournalsDermatology Search Advanced Search Article PDF first page preview Close Modal © 2005 S. Karger AG, Basel2005Copyright / Drug Dosage / DisclaimerCopyright: All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be translated into other languages, reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, microcopying, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.Drug Dosage: The authors and the publisher have exerted every effort to ensure that drug selection and dosage set forth in this text are in accord with current recommendations and practice at the time of publication. However, in view of ongoing research, changes in government regulations, and the constant flow of information relating to drug therapy and drug reactions, the reader is urged to check the package insert for each drug for any changes in indications and dosage and for added warnings and precautions. This is particularly important when the recommended agent is a new and/or infrequently employed drug.Disclaimer: The statements, opinions and data contained in this publication are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and not of the publishers and the editor(s). The appearance of advertisements or/and product references in the publication is not a warranty, endorsement, or approval of the products or services advertised or of their effectiveness, quality or safety. The publisher and the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to persons or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content or advertisements. You do not currently have access to this content.

Pipe smoking has been related to the risk of cancers of the upper digestive and respiratory tract, but quantification of the risk for exclusive pipe smokers is still limited. To analyse the association between exclusive pipe smoking and cancers of the upper digestive tract, we used data from a series of case-control studies conducted in Italy and Switzerland between 1984 and 1999. After excluding cigarette and cigar smokers, 41 male oral and pharyngeal cancer cases, 52 male oesophageal cancer cases and 1,032 male controls were included in the present analysis. Odds ratios (OR) of cancers were estimated by the mean of unconditional multivariate logistic regression, including terms for age, study centre, education, body mass index, and alcohol drinking. Compared to never smokers, exclusive pipe smokers had an OR of 8.7 [95% confidence intervals (CI): 4.0-18.9] of all upper digestive tract cancers. The OR was 12.6 for oral and pharyngeal and 7.2 for oesophageal cancer. Pipe smokers who were also heavy alcohol drinkers had an OR of 38.8 (95% CI: 13.6-110.9) as compared to never smokers and light drinkers. Thus, pipe smoking and heavy alcohol drinking appears to interact at least on a multiplicative model.

The authors pooled data from 15 case-control studies of head and neck cancer (9,107 cases, 14,219 controls) to investigate the independent associations with consumption of beer, wine, and liquor. In particular, they calculated associations with different measures of beverage consumption separately for subjects who drank beer only (858 cases, 986 controls), for liquor-only drinkers (499 cases, 527 controls), and for wine-only drinkers (1,021 cases, 2,460 controls), with alcohol never drinkers (1,124 cases, 3,487 controls) used as a common reference group. The authors observed similar associations with ethanol-standardized consumption frequency for beer-only drinkers (odds ratios (ORs) = 1.6, 1.9, 2.2, and 5.4 for < or =5, 6-15, 16-30, and >30 drinks per week, respectively; P(trend) < 0.0001) and liquor-only drinkers (ORs = 1.6, 1.5, 2.3, and 3.6; P < 0.0001). Among wine-only drinkers, the odds ratios for moderate levels of consumption frequency approached the null, whereas those for higher consumption levels were comparable to those of drinkers of other beverage types (ORs = 1.1, 1.2, 1.9, and 6.3; P < 0.0001). Study findings suggest that the relative risks of head and neck cancer for beer and liquor are comparable. The authors observed weaker associations with moderate wine consumption, although they cannot rule out confounding from diet and other lifestyle factors as an explanation for this finding. Given the presence of heterogeneity in study-specific results, their findings should be interpreted with caution.

In this study, we examined the association between meat and fish intake and the risk of various cancers. Mailed questionnaires were completed by 19,732 incident, histologically confirmed cases of cancer of the stomach, colon, rectum, pancreas, lung, breast, ovary, prostate, testis, kidney, bladder, brain, non-Hodgkin's lymphomas (NHL), and leukemia and 5,039 population controls between 1994 and 1997 in 8 Canadian provinces. Measurement included information on socioeconomic status, lifestyle habits, and diet. A 69-item food frequency questionnaire provided data on eating habits 2 yr before data collection. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were derived through unconditional logistic regression. Total meat and processed meat were directly related to the risk of stomach, colon, rectum, pancreas, lung, breast (mainly postmenopausal), prostate, testis, kidney, bladder, and leukemia. Red meat was significantly associated with colon, lung (mainly in men), and bladder cancer. No relation was observed for cancer of the ovary, brain, and NHL. No consistent excess risk emerged for fish and poultry, which were inversely related to the risk of a number of cancer sites. These findings add further evidence that meat, specifically red and processed meat, plays an unfavorable role in the risk of several cancers. Fish and poultry appear to be favorable diet indicators.

After a steady increase since the 1950s, laryngeal cancer mortality had tended to level off since the early 1980s in men from most European countries. To update trends in laryngeal cancer mortality in Europe, age-standardized (world standard) mortality rates per 100,000 were derived from the WHO mortality database for 33 European countries over the period 1980-2001. Jointpoint analysis was used to identify significant changes in mortality rates. In the European Union (EU) as a whole, male mortality declined by 0.8% per year between 1980 and 1989, by 2.8% between 1989 and 1995, by 5.3% between 1995 and 1998, and by 1.5% thereafter (rates were 5.1/100,000 in 1980-1981 and 3.3/100,000 in 2000-2001). This mainly reflects a decrease in rates in men from western and southern European countries, which had exceedingly high rates in the past. Male laryngeal mortality rose up to the early 1990s, and leveled off thereafter in several countries from central and eastern Europe. In 2000-2001 there was still a 10-15-fold variation in male laryngeal mortality between the highest rates in Croatia (7.9/100,000) and Hungary (7.7/100,000) and the lowest ones in Sweden (0.5/100,000) and Finland (0.8/100,000). Laryngeal cancer mortality was comparatively low in women from most European countries, with stable rates around 0.3/100,000 in the EU as a whole over the last 2 decades. Laryngeal cancer trends should be interpreted in terms of patterns and changes in exposure to alcohol and tobacco. Despite recent declines, the persistence of a wide variability in male laryngeal cancer mortality indicates that there is still ample scope for prevention of laryngeal cancer in Europe.