Pleiotropy across the 8q24 region is perhaps the most intriguing of the genome-wide association findings relating to cancer. This region of chromosome 8 is a gene desert, far from any recognized genes. Guarrera et al., whose work is reported in this issue (Am J Epidemiol. 2012;175(6):479–487), took an epidemiologic approach to learn more about the 8q24 region. They capitalized on their ascertainment of other endpoints in members of the cohort at the Turin site of the European Prospective Investigation Into Cancer and Nutrition to investigate multiple outcomes for additional pleiotropic effects in the 8q24 region. Alternative design options might involve genotyping of more variants, incorporation of more cases, or use of a single control group close to the size of the most common case group. Their analytic methods reflect the uncertainty of the underlying biology. The findings sharpen the scientific question about how variation in the 8q24 region affects pathogenesis. The genome-wide association effort is possible because of the economy of scale afforded by extremely dense genotyping. Strict adherence to the hypothesis-driven approach would ignore information that is obtainable at a trivial cost. The genome-wide association strategy tests whether agnostic data-mining methods can advance knowledge alongside or even in place of the standard hypothesis-driven approach, which is the conventional scientific method children learn in kindergarten and onward, even through graduate school and beyond.

Background. Few studies have addressed the timing of cervical cytologic abnormalities and human papillomavirus (HPV) positivity during the course of an infection. It remains largely unknown how infections detected by HPV and cytology wax and wane relative to each other. The aim of this analysis was to assess the longitudinal relationship of abnormal cytology and HPV positivity in a 7-year prospective study of 2500 women in Guanacaste, Costa Rica.

Methods. At each semiannual or annual visit, cervical specimens were screened using liquid-based cytology and tested for >40 HPV types with use of MY09/MY11 L1 degenerate primer polymerase chain reaction–based methods. On the basis of previous work, we separated prevalent and newly detected infections in younger and older women.

Results. Among newly detected HPV- and/or cytology-positive events, HPV and cytology appeared together ∼60% of the time; when discordant, HPV tended to appear before cytology in younger and older women. Combining newly and prevalently detected events, HPV and cytology disappeared at the same time >70% of the time. When discordant, HPV tended to disappear after cytology in younger and older women.

Conclusions. Detection of HPV DNA and associated cytological abnormalities tend to come and leave together; however, when discordant, detection of HPV DNA tends to precede and/or last longer than associated cytologic abnormalities.

Background

Several serological assays have been developed to detect antibodies elicited against infections with oncogenic human papillomavirus (HPV) type 16. The association between antibody levels measured by various assays and subsequent HPV infection risk may differ. We compared HPV16-specific antibody levels previously measured by a virus-like particle (VLP)-based direct enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA) with levels measured by additional assays and evaluated the protection against HPV16 infection conferred at different levels of the assays.

Methodology/Principal Findings

Replicate enrollment serum aliquots from 388 unvaccinated women in the control arm of the Costa Rica HPV vaccine trial were measured for HPV16 seropositivity using three serological assays: a VLP-based direct ELISA; a VLP-based competitive Luminex immunoassay (cLIA); and a secreted alkaline phosphatase protein neutralization assay (SEAP-NA). We assessed the association of assay seropositivity and risk of subsequent HPV16 infection over four years of follow-up by calculating sampling-adjusted odds ratios (OR) and HPV16 seropositivity based on standard cutoff from the cLIA was significantly associated with protection from subsequent HPV16 infection (OR = 0.48, CI = 0.27–0.86, compared with seronegatives). Compared with seronegatives, the highest seropositive tertile antibody levels from the direct ELISA (OR = 0.53, CI = 0.28–0.90) as well as the SEAP-NA (OR = 0.20, CI = 0.06, 0.64) were also significantly associated with protection from HPV16 infection.

Conclusions/Significance

Enrollment HPV16 seropositivity by any of the three serological assays evaluated was associated with protection from subsequent infection, although cutoffs for immune protection were different. We defined the assays and seropositivity levels after natural infection that better measure and translate to protective immunity.

In an analysis of 31,717 cancer cases and 26,136 cancer-free controls drawn from 13 genome-wide association studies (GWAS), we observed large chromosomal abnormalities in a subset of clones from DNA obtained from blood or buccal samples. Mosaic chromosomal abnormalities, either aneuploidy or copy-neutral loss of heterozygosity, of size >2 Mb were observed in autosomes of 517 individuals (0.89%) with abnormal cell proportions between 7% and 95%. In cancer-free individuals, the frequency increased with age; 0.23% under 50 and 1.91% between 75 and 79 (p=4.8×10−8). Mosaic abnormalities were more frequent in individuals with solid-tumors (0.97% versus 0.74% in cancer-free individuals, OR=1.25, p=0.016), with a stronger association for cases who had DNA collected prior to diagnosis or treatment (OR=1.45, p=0.0005). Detectable clonal mosaicism was common in individuals for whom DNA was collected at least one year prior to diagnosis of leukemia compared to cancer-free individuals (OR=35.4, p=3.8×10−11). These findings underscore the importance of the role and time-dependent nature of somatic events in the etiology of cancer and other late-onset diseases.

We conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of breast cancer by genotyping 528,173 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 1,145 cases of invasive breast cancer among postmenopausal white women, and 1,142 controls. We identified a set of four SNPs in intron 2 of FGFR2, a tyrosine kinase receptor previously shown to be amplified and/or over-expressed in some breast cancers, as highly associated with breast cancer and we confirmed this association in 1,776 cases and 2,072 controls from three additional studies. In both association testing and ancestral recombination graph analysis, FGFR2 haplotypes were associated with risk of breast cancer. Across the four studies the association with all four SNPs was highly statistically significant (Ptrend for the most strongly associated SNP, rs1219648 = 1.1 × 10−10; population attributable risk = 16%). Four SNPs at other chromosomal loci most strongly associated with breast cancer in the initial GWAS were not associated with risk in the three replication studies. Our summary results from the GWAS are freely available online in a form that should speed the identification of additional loci conferring risk.

Carcinogenic human papillomavirus (HPV) infections are very common after sexual debut and nearly all become undetectable (“clear”) within a few years. Following clearance, the long-term risks of type-specific HPV re-appearance and subsequent risk of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2 or worse (CIN2+) are not well defined.

In the 7-year, population-based cohort study in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, we studied how often type-specific carcinogenic HPV infections re-appeared after clearance, and how often re-appearance led to CIN2+. We considered 1740 carcinogenic HPV infections detected by MY09/11 PCR among 2805 women (18-91 years old, median 34) who were actively followed at 6- or 12-month intervals. We identified women with 1 or more type-specific HPV infections that cleared and re-appeared, and further defined a subgroup of “definite clearance and re-appearance” (≥ 2 intervening negative results over a period of ≥ 1 year). We determined the absolute risk of CIN2+ among the different groups. P values are two sided.

Only 7.7% (81/1052) of HPV-infected women had intervening negative results. Very few (3.7%, 39/1052) had “definite clearance and re-appearance”, of which 5.1% (2/39) subsequently persisted to a diagnosis of CIN2. There were zero CIN3+ lesions.

Extremely few women (2/2805 of women in our cohort) had a type-specific carcinogenic HPV infection clear, re-appear and lead to CIN2+. If confirmed, this argues against vaccination to avoid re-appearance that leads to precursor lesions and against the need of frequent HPV screening after initial negative results.

Target groups for human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination are controversial. We evaluated vaccine efficacy (VE) against 1-year persistent infection, stratified by age and sexual behavior, among young women in Costa Rica. We randomized 7,466 healthy women 18 to 25 years of age to HPV16/18 or hepatitis A vaccine (follow-up, 50.4 months). According-to-protocol (ATP) cohorts included compliant HPV-negative women; intention-to-treat (ITT) included all randomized women. ATP VE was 90.9% (95% CI, 82.0–95.9) against HPV16/18 infections, 44.5% against HPV31/33/45 (95% CI, 17.5–63.1), and 12.4% (95% CI, −3.2 to 25.6) against any oncogenic infection. Overall ITT VE against HPV16/18 infections was 49.0%, but ATP and ITT VE almost reached 100% in year 4 of follow-up. ATP efficacy against HPV16/18 was similar by age, but ITT VE was greatest among youngest women (68.9% among those 18–19 years of age; 21.8% among those 24–25 years of age) and 79.8% among virgins. Among previously unexposed women, vaccination is highly efficacious against HPV16/18 and partially against HPV31/33/45. Vaccination is most effective in women and girls before they initiate sexual activity, with programmatic and individual decision implications.

Background

Seropositivity to HPV16 and 18 antibodies is used as a measure of cumulative HPV exposure and as a stratifier of HPV exposure for vaccine efficacy analyses. Overall performance of these assays, as a measure of HPV exposure, has not been evaluated.

Methods

Using data from the enrollment phase of the HPV16/18 vaccine trial in Costa Rica, we evaluated the performance of the polyclonal ELISA HPV16 and 18 serological assays as a measure of HPV exposure. Biological (for eg. HPV infection at the cervix) and behavioral characteristics (for eg. lifetime number of sexual partners) with known associations with current and past HPV infection were used to define cases and controls (HPV exposed vs. not exposed). Pre-vaccination serum was measured for antibodies against HPV16 and HPV18 by ELISA; cervical samples were tested for HPV DNA using PCR SPF10/LiPA25. ELISA results were analyzed using receiver-operator-characteristic curves (ROC); performance was evaluated at the manufacturer set cutpoint (HPV16 =8, HPV18 =7) and at cutpoints chosen to optimize sensitivity and specificity (HPV16 =34, HPV18 =60).

Results

Defining cases as type-specific HPV DNA positive with high-grade abnormal cytolzogy (i.e. combined molecular and microscopic markers of infection), HPV16-ELISA gave sensitivity that was lower at the optimal cutpoint than the manufacturer cutpoint (62.2 compared with 75.7, respectively; p=0.44). However, specificity was higher (85.3 compared with 70.4, respectively; p<0.0001). Similarly, HPV18-ELISA gave sensitivity that was lower at the optimal cutpoint than the manufacturer cutpoint (34.5 compared with 51.7, respectively; p=0.40), with higher specificities (94.9 compared with 72.6, respectively; p<0.0001).

Conclusions

Modifying cutpoints did not improve the low sensitivity. The low sensitivity of this assay does not support its use for risk stratification or clinical settings.

Affordable early screening in subjects with high risk of lung cancer has great potential to improve survival from this deadly disease. We measured gene expression from lung tissue and peripheral whole blood (PWB) from adenocarcinoma cases and controls to identify dysregulated lung cancer genes that could be tested in blood to improve identification of at-risk patients in the future. Genome-wide mRNA expression analysis was conducted in 153 subjects (73 adenocarcinoma cases, 80 controls) from the Environment And Genetics in Lung cancer Etiology (EAGLE) study using PWB and paired snap-frozen tumor and non-involved lung tissue samples. Analyses were conducted using unpaired t-tests, linear mixed effects and ANOVA models. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) was computed to assess the predictive accuracy of the identified biomarkers. We identified 50 dysregulated genes in stage I adenocarcinoma versus control PWB samples (False Discovery Rate ≤0.1, fold change ≥1.5 or ≤0.66). Among them, eight (TGFBR3, RUNX3, TRGC2, TRGV9, TARP, ACP1, VCAN, and TSTA3) differentiated paired tumor versus non-involved lung tissue samples in stage I cases, suggesting a similar pattern of lung cancer-related changes in PWB and lung tissue. These results were confirmed in two independent gene expression analyses in a blood-based case-control study (n=212) and a tumor-non tumor paired tissue study (n=54). The eight genes discriminated patients with lung cancer from healthy controls with high accuracy (AUC=0.81, 95% CI=0.74–0.87). Our finding suggests the use of gene expression from PWB for the identification of early detection markers of lung cancer in the future.

Objective

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) incidence is higher among blacks than whites in the United States, and has been associated with the frequency and timing of childbirth among women in some epidemiologic studies. We investigated whether reproductive factors are associated with RCC, overall and by race, within a population-based case-control study.

Methods

Between 2002 and 2007, 497 female cases of incident RCC (136 black, 361 white) and 546 female controls (273 black, 273 white) within the Detroit and Chicago metropolitan areas were enrolled. Information on reproductive history and other factors was collected through in-person interviews. Multivariate adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were computed using unconditional logistic regression.

Results

Reduced RCC risk was observed among women aged ≥30 years at first live birth, relative to an age of <20 years (OR 0.5, 95% CI 0.3–0.9). This association was present among both white (OR 0.4, 95% CI 0.2–0.9) and, though not statistically significant, black women (OR 0.6, 95% CI 0.2–1.8). In analyses restricted to clear cell adenocarcinoma, the most common RCC histologic subtype, the association was particularly strong (OR 0.3, 95% CI 0.2–0.8). We did not observe clear evidence of association with RCC for other reproductive factors.

Conclusions

Our findings further support an association between late maternal age at first birth and reduced RCC risk, and suggest that the association may be particularly strong for clear cell adenocarcinoma.

We report a genome-wide association study in 10,286 cases and 9,135 controls of European ancestry, in the Cancer Genetic Markers of Susceptibility (CGEMS) initiative, identifying a new association with prostate cancer risk on chromosome 8q24 (rs620861, p=1.3×10-10, heterozygote OR = 1.17, 95% CI 1.10 – 1.24; homozygote OR = 1.33; 95% CI 1.21 – 1.45). This defines a new prostate locus on 8q24, Region 4, previously associated with breast cancer.

Background

Low mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) copy number is a common feature of renal cell carcinoma (RCC), and may influence tumor development. Results from a recent case-control study suggest that low mtDNA copy number in peripheral blood may be a marker for increased RCC risk. In an attempt to replicate that finding, we measured mtDNA copy number in peripheral blood DNA from a U.S. population-based case-control study of RCC.

Methodology/Principal Findings

Relative mtDNA copy number was measured in triplicate by a quantitative real-time PCR assay using DNA extracted from peripheral whole blood. Cases (n = 603) had significantly lower mtDNA copy number than controls (n = 603; medians 0.85, 0.91 respectively; P = 0.0001). In multiple logistic regression analyses, the lowest quartile of mtDNA copy number was associated with a 60% increase in RCC risk relative to the highest quartile (OR = 1.6, 95% CI = 1.1–2.2; Ptrend = 0.009). This association remained in analyses restricted to cases treated by surgery alone (OR Q1 = 1.4, 95% CI = 1.0–2.1) and to localized tumors (2.0, 1.3–2.8).

Conclusions/Significance

Our findings from this investigation, to our knowledge the largest of its kind, offer important confirmatory evidence that low mtDNA copy number is associated with increased RCC risk. Additional research is needed to assess whether the association is replicable in prospective studies.

Previous genome-wide association studies have identified two independent variants in HNF1B as susceptibility loci for prostate cancer risk. To fine-map common genetic variation in this region, we genotyped 79 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the 17q12 region harboring HNF1B in 10 272 prostate cancer cases and 9123 controls of European ancestry from 10 case–control studies as part of the Cancer Genetic Markers of Susceptibility (CGEMS) initiative. Ten SNPs were significantly related to prostate cancer risk at a genome-wide significance level of P < 5 × 10−8 with the most significant association with rs4430796 (P = 1.62 × 10−24). However, risk within this first locus was not entirely explained by rs4430796. Although modestly correlated (r2= 0.64), rs7405696 was also associated with risk (P = 9.35 × 10−23) even after adjustment for rs4430769 (P = 0.007). As expected, rs11649743 was related to prostate cancer risk (P = 3.54 × 10−8); however, the association within this second locus was stronger for rs4794758 (P = 4.95 × 10−10), which explained all of the risk observed with rs11649743 when both SNPs were included in the same model (P = 0.32 for rs11649743; P = 0.002 for rs4794758). Sequential conditional analyses indicated that five SNPs (rs4430796, rs7405696, rs4794758, rs1016990 and rs3094509) together comprise the best model for risk in this region. This study demonstrates a complex relationship between variants in the HNF1B region and prostate cancer risk. Further studies are needed to investigate the biological basis of the association of variants in 17q12 with prostate cancer.

Background

The role of occupation in the etiology of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is unclear. Here, we investigated associations between employment in specific occupations and industries and RCC, and its most common histologic subtype, clear cell RCC (ccRCC).

Methods

Between 2002 and 2007, a population-based case–control study of Caucasians and African Americans (1,217 cases; 1,235 controls) was conducted within the Detroit and Chicago metropolitan areas to investigate risk factors for RCC. As part of this study, occupational histories were ascertained through in-person interviews. We computed odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) relating occupation and industry to RCC risk using adjusted unconditional logistic regression models.

Results

Employment in the agricultural crop production industry for five years or more was associated with RCC (OR = 3.3 [95% CI = 1.0-11.5]) and ccRCC in particular (OR = 6.3 [95% CI = 1.7-23.3], P for trend with duration of employment = 0.0050). Similarly, RCC risk was elevated for employment of five years or longer in non-managerial agricultural and related occupations (ORRCC = 2.1 [95% CI = 1.0-4.5]; ORccRCC = 3.1 [95% CI = 1.4-6.8]). Employment in the dry-cleaning industry was also associated with elevated risk (ORRCC = 2.0 [95% CI = 0.9-4.4], P for trend = 0.093; ORccRCC = 3.0 [95% CI = 1.2-7.4], P for trend = 0.031). Suggestive elevated associations were observed for police/public safety workers, health care workers and technicians, and employment in the electronics, auto repair, and cleaning/janitorial services industries; protective associations were suggested for many white-collar jobs including computer science and administrative occupations as well employment in the business, legislative, and education industries.

Conclusions

Our findings provide support for an elevated risk of RCC in the agricultural and dry-cleaning industries and suggest that these associations may be stronger for the ccRCC subtype. Additional studies are needed to confirm these findings.

Genome-wide association studies have identified prostate cancer susceptibility alleles on chromosome 11q13. As part of the Cancer Genetic Markers of Susceptibility (CGEMS) Initiative, the region flanking the most significant marker, rs10896449, was fine mapped in 10 272 cases and 9123 controls of European origin (10 studies) using 120 common single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) selected by a two-staged tagging strategy using HapMap SNPs. Single-locus analysis identified 18 SNPs below genome-wide significance (P< 10−8) with rs10896449 the most significant (P= 7.94 × 10−19). Multi-locus models that included significant SNPs sequentially identified a second association at rs12793759 [odds ratio (OR) = 1.14, P= 4.76 × 10−5, adjusted P= 0.004] that is independent of rs10896449 and remained significant after adjustment for multiple testing within the region. rs10896438, a proxy of previously reported rs12418451 (r2= 0.96), independent of both rs10896449 and rs12793759 was detected (OR = 1.07, P= 5.92 × 10−3, adjusted P= 0.054). Our observation of a recombination hotspot that separates rs10896438 from rs10896449 and rs12793759, and low linkage disequilibrium (rs10896449–rs12793759, r2= 0.17; rs10896449–rs10896438, r2= 0.10; rs12793759–rs10896438, r2= 0.12) corroborate our finding of three independent signals. By analysis of tagged SNPs across ∼123 kb using next generation sequencing of 63 controls of European origin, 1000 Genome and HapMap data, we observed multiple surrogates for the three independent signals marked by rs10896449 (n= 31), rs10896438 (n= 24) and rs12793759 (n= 8). Our results indicate that a complex architecture underlying the common variants contributing to prostate cancer risk at 11q13. We estimate that at least 63 common variants should be considered in future studies designed to investigate the biological basis of the multiple association signals.

Background. A competitive Luminex Immunoassay (cLIA) has been developed to measure neutralizing antibodies against human papillomavirus (HPV) types 6, 11, 16 and 18.

Methods. In a cohort of 974 women from the Guanacaste Natural History Study, we studied the relationship of baseline cLIA and virus-like particle (VLP) enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) (HPV16 and HPV18 only) seropositivity to measures of HPV exposure, HPV DNA positivity, number of sexual partners, cytology findings, and age. We then studied immunity against subsequent infection with HPV6, 11, 16, 18 and related types over a 7-year period.

Results. cLIA seroprevalence varied with previous exposure; the prevalence of cLIA results positive for HPV16 and HPV18 was lower than the prevalence of positive VLP ELISA responses. cLIA and VLP ELISA positivity predicted protection from subsequent infections with concordant types. The combined odds ratio for HPV16 and HPV18 cLIA positivity was 0.41 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.21–0.80), and the combined odds ratio for the HPV16 and HPV18 VLP ELISA positivity was 0.65 (95% CI, 0.46–0.93). Of individual types, statistical significance was only reached for HPV16 cLIA positivity (odds ratio, 0.44; 95% CI, 0.15–0.94).

Conclusions. Both assays showed an association between positive results and significant protection from subsequent infections for HPV16 and HPV18 combined. cLIA seroprevalence was lower than VLP ELISA, suggesting that the assay detects a subset of antibodies following natural infection that are specifically linked to immunity against subsequent HPV infection.

Background

Human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA testing is more sensitive than cytology for detection of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 3 and cancer (≥CIN3). Adding HPV testing to cytology is recommended for women ≥30 but long-term prospective studies of HPV testing are rare.

Methods

Beginning in 1989-1990, ∼20,000 women in a pre-paid health maintenance organization (median age = 34) were followed passively by recommended annual cytology. We tested archived cervicovaginal lavage specimens collected at enrollment, primarily by MY09-MY11 PCR-based methods, for carcinogenic HPV types. We calculated positive and negative predictive values for the entire study period, and Kaplan-Meier estimates of cumulative probability for ≥CIN3, up to 18 years of follow-up.

Results

We observed 47 cases of invasive cervical cancer during the study period, and 156 cases of CIN3. Predictive values and Kaplan-Meier analyses yielded the same conclusions. In women 30 and older, the reassurance against ≥CIN3 following a single negative HPV test was long-lasting (cumulative probability = 0.7% during follow-up). In this age group, a single HPV test (positive vs. negative, hazard ratio of 8.5, 95%CI = 4.8-15.1) provided greater long-term risk stratification than a single cytologic result (abnormal vs. normal, HR = 2.9, 95%CI = 1.2-6.6). The risk for ≥CIN3 was higher for HPV16 than for the average of the other carcinogenic types (hazard ratio = 2.7).

Conclusion and Impact

The data from this cohort study demonstrate the long-term predictive value of HPV testing, particularly in women ≥30, and a possible role for distinguishing particularly carcinogenic types like HPV16.

Background

Anal cancer remains rare (incidence of ∼1.5 per 100,000 women annually) but rates are increasing in many countries. Human papillomavirus-16 (HPV16) infection causes most cases. We evaluated vaccine efficacy (VE) of an ASO4-adjuvanted HPV16/18 vaccine against anal HPV16/18 infection.

Methods

In a randomized double-blind controlled trial designed to evaluate VE against persistent cervical HPV16/18 infections and associated precancerous lesions in Costa Rica, 4210 healthy women underwent anal specimen collection (4224 of 5968= 70.8% of eligible women) at the final blinded study visit 4 years after vaccination to evaluate anal HPV16/18 VE. Cervical HPV16/18 VE among the same women at the same visit was calculated as a comparator. For this ancillary work, analyses were conducted in a restricted cohort of women both cervical HPV16/18 DNA negative and HPV 16/18 seronegative prior at enrollment (N=1989), and in the full cohort (all women with an anal specimen).

Findings

In the restricted cohort, VE against prevalent HPV16/18 anal infection measured one-time, four-years post-vaccination was 83.6% (95%CI 66.7% to 92.8%), which was comparable to cervical HPV16/18 VE (87.9%, 95%CI 77.4% to 94.0%). In the full cohort, HPV16/18 VE was statistically lower at the anus (62.0%, 95%CI 47.1% to 73.1%) compared to the cervix (76.4%, 95%CI 67.0% to 83.5%) (p for anatomic-site interaction =0.03). Significant and comparable VE estimates against a composite endpoint of HPV31/33/45 (i.e.: cross-protection) was observed at the anus and cervix.

Interpretation

The ASO4-adjuvanted vaccine affords strong protection against anal HPV, particularly among women more likely to be HPV naïve at vaccination. Funding. The Costa Rica HPV Vaccine Trial is sponsored and funded by the NCI (contract N01-CP-11005), with funding support from the National Institutes of Health Office of Research on Women's Health, and conducted with support from the Ministry of Health of Costa Rica. Vaccine was provided for our trial by GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals (GSK), under a Clinical Trials Agreement with the NCI.

Background

Most studies of the association between diesel exhaust exposure and lung cancer suggest a modest, but consistent, increased risk. However, to our knowledge, no study to date has had quantitative data on historical diesel exposure coupled with adequate sample size to evaluate the exposure–response relationship between diesel exhaust and lung cancer. Our purpose was to evaluate the relationship between quantitative estimates of exposure to diesel exhaust and lung cancer mortality after adjustment for smoking and other potential confounders.

Methods

We conducted a nested case–control study in a cohort of 12 315 workers in eight non-metal mining facilities, which included 198 lung cancer deaths and 562 incidence density–sampled control subjects. For each case subject, we selected up to four control subjects, individually matched on mining facility, sex, race/ethnicity, and birth year (within 5 years), from all workers who were alive before the day the case subject died. We estimated diesel exhaust exposure, represented by respirable elemental carbon (REC), by job and year, for each subject, based on an extensive retrospective exposure assessment at each mining facility. We conducted both categorical and continuous regression analyses adjusted for cigarette smoking and other potential confounding variables (eg, history of employment in high-risk occupations for lung cancer and a history of respiratory disease) to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Analyses were both unlagged and lagged to exclude recent exposure such as that occurring in the 15 years directly before the date of death (case subjects)/reference date (control subjects). All statistical tests were two-sided.

Results

We observed statistically significant increasing trends in lung cancer risk with increasing cumulative REC and average REC intensity. Cumulative REC, lagged 15 years, yielded a statistically significant positive gradient in lung cancer risk overall (P trend = .001); among heavily exposed workers (ie, above the median of the top quartile [REC ≥ 1005 μg/m3-y]), risk was approximately three times greater (OR = 3.20, 95% CI = 1.33 to 7.69) than that among workers in the lowest quartile of exposure. Among never smokers, odd ratios were 1.0, 1.47 (95% CI = 0.29 to 7.50), and 7.30 (95% CI = 1.46 to 36.57) for workers with 15-year lagged cumulative REC tertiles of less than 8, 8 to less than 304, and 304 μg/m3-y or more, respectively. We also observed an interaction between smoking and 15-year lagged cumulative REC (P interaction = .086) such that the effect of each of these exposures was attenuated in the presence of high levels of the other.

Conclusion

Our findings provide further evidence that diesel exhaust exposure may cause lung cancer in humans and may represent a potential public health burden.

To explore alternative cervical cancer screening approaches in an underserved population, we compared the performance of human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA assays in combination with different sample collection methods for primary cervical screening in the Mississippi Delta region. Three specimens were collected from women aged 26 to 65 years who were either routinely undergoing screening (n = 252) or not (n = 191): clinician-collected cervical specimens, clinician-collected cervicovaginal specimens, and self-collected cervicovaginal specimens taken at home. A novel collection device and medium were used for cervicovaginal sampling. Specimens were tested by three HPV DNA assays: hybrid capture 2 (HC2; Qiagen Corp., Gaithersburg, MD), Linear Array (LA; Roche Molecular Systems, Pleasanton, CA), and Amplicor (Roche Molecular Systems, Pleasanton, CA). Liquid-based cytology was performed on cervical specimens. We compared the overall positivity (a proxy for clinical specificity) for any carcinogenic HPV genotype and calculated the agreement across assay and specimen type using McNemar's test for differences in test positivity. Across all three assays there were no significant differences between clinician-collected and self-collected cervicovaginal specimens (P > 0.01 for all comparisons). For both cervicovaginal specimens (clinician collected and self-collected), fewer women tested positive by HC2 than by LA or Amplicor (P < 0.01 for all comparisons). HC2 had the best agreement between specimens for all assays. HC2 is likely more clinically specific, although possibly less sensitive, than either PCR test. Thus, use of HC2 on cervicovaginal specimens for screening could result in fewer referrals compared to LA and Amplicor.

Recent genome-wide association studies have identified independent susceptibility loci for prostate cancer (CaP) that could influence risk through interaction with other, possibly undetected, susceptibility loci. We explored evidence of interaction between pairs of 13 known susceptibility loci and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) across the genome to generate hypotheses about the functionality of CaP susceptibility regions. We used data from Cancer Genetic Markers of Susceptibility: Stage I included 523,841 SNPs in 1175 cases and 1100 controls; Stage II included 27,383 SNPs in an additional 3941 cases and 3964 controls. Power calculations assessed the magnitude of interactions our study is likely to detect. Logistic regression was used with alternative methods that exploit constraints of gene-gene independence between unlinked loci to increase power. Our empirical evaluation demonstrated that an empirical Bayes (EB) technique is powerful and robust to possible violation of the independence assumption. Our EB analysis identified several noteworthy interacting SNP pairs, although none reached genome-wide significance. We highlight a Stage II interaction between the major CaP susceptibility locus in the subregion of 8q24 that contains POU5F1B and an intronic SNP in the transcription factor EPAS1, which has potentially important functional implications for 8q24. Another noteworthy result involves interaction of a known CaP susceptibility marker near the prostate protease genes KLK2 and KLK3 with an intronic SNP in PRXX2. Overall, the interactions we have identified merit follow-up study, particularly the EPAS1 interaction which has implications not only in CaP but also in other epithelial cancers that are associated with the 8q24 locus.

Background

Host genetic factors might affect the risk of progression from infection with carcinogenic human papillomavirus (HPV), the etiologic agent for cervical cancer, to persistent HPV infection, and hence to cervical precancer and cancer.

Methodology/Principal Findings

We assessed 18,310 tag single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from 1113 genes in 416 cervical intraepithelial neoplasia 3 (CIN3)/cancer cases, 356 women with persistent carcinogenic HPV infection (median persistence of 25 months) and 425 randomly selected women (non-cases and non-HPV persistent) from the 10,049 women from the Guanacaste, Costa Rica HPV natural history cohort. For gene and SNP associations, we computed age-adjusted odds ratio and p-trend. Three comparisons were made: 1) association with CIN3/cancer (compared CIN3/cancer cases to random controls), 2) association with persistence (compared HPV persistence to random controls), and 3) progression (compared CIN3/cancers with HPV-persistent group). Regions statistically significantly associated with CIN3/cancer included genes for peroxiredoxin 3 PRDX3, and ribosomal protein S19 RPS19. The single most significant SNPs from each gene associated with CIN3/cancer were PRDX3 rs7082598 (Ptrend<0.0001), and RPS19 rs2305809 (Ptrend=0.0007), respectively. Both SNPs were also associated with progression.

Conclusions/Significance

These data suggest involvement of two genes, RSP19 and PRDX3, or other SNPs in linkage disequilibrium, with cervical cancer risk. Further investigation showed that they may be involved in both the persistence and progression transition stages. Our results require replication but, if true, suggest a role for ribosomal dysfunction, mitochondrial processes, and/or oxidative stress, or other unknown function of these genes in cervical carcinogenesis.

Objective. We investigated coinfection patterns for 25 human papillomavirus (HPV) types and assessed the risk conferred by multiple HPV types toward cervical disease.

Methods. Sexually active women (n=5,871) in the NCI-sponsored Costa Rica HPV Vaccine Trial's prevaccination enrollment visit were analyzed. Genotyping for 25 HPVs was performed using SPF10/LiPA25. We calculated odds ratios (ORs) to assess coinfection patterns for each genotype with 24 other genotypes. These ORs were pooled and compared with pair-specific ORs to identify genotype combinations that deviated from the pooled OR. We compared risk of CIN2+/HSIL+between multiple and single infections and assessed additive statistical interactions.

Results. Of the 2478 HPV-positive women, 1070 (43.2%) were infected with multiple types. Multiple infections occurred significantly more frequently than predicted by chance. However, this affinity to be involved in a coinfection (pooled OR for 300 type-type combinations=2.2; 95% confidence interval [CI]=2.1-2.4) was not different across HPV type-type combinations. Compared with single infections, coinfection with multiple α9 species was associated with significantly increased risk of CIN2+(OR=2.2; 95% CI=1.1–4.6) and HSIL+(OR=1.6; 95% CI=1.1–2.4). However, disease risk was similar to the sum of estimated risk from individual types, with little evidence for synergistic interactions.

Conclusions. Coinfecting HPV genotypes occur at random and lead to cervical disease independently.

Background. Detailed descriptions of long-term persistence of human papillomavirus (HPV) in the absence of cervical precancer are lacking.

Methods. In a large, population-based natural study conducted in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, we studied a subset of 810 initially HPV-positive women with ≥3 years of active follow-up with ≥3 screening visits who had no future evidence of cervical precancer. Cervical specimens were tested for >40 HPV genotypes using a MY09/11 L1-targeted polymerase chain reaction method.

Results. Seventy-two prevalently-detected HPV infections (5%) in 58 women (7%) persisted until the end of the follow-up period (median duration of follow-up, 7 years) without evidence of cervical precancer. At enrollment, women with long-term persistence were more likely to have multiple prevalently-detected HPV infections (P <.001) than were women who cleared their baseline HPV infections during follow-up. In a logistic regression model, women with long-term persistence were more likely than women who cleared infections to have another newly-detected HPV infection detectable at ≥3 visits (odds ratio, 2.6; 95% confidence interval, 1.2–5.6).

Conclusions. Women with long-term persistence of HPV infection appear to be generally more susceptible to other HPV infections, especially longer-lasting infections, than are women who cleared their HPV infections.

The presence of more than one human papillomavirus (HPV) genotype may influence the duration of prevalently detected infections. This analysis included 1,646 infections detected at enrollment in 980 women from the Guanacaste, Costa Rica, cohort who were actively followed up every 6–12 months for up to 8 years. We categorized HPV infections as single or multiple types. Persistence of infections was estimated using discrete-time survival analysis. The difference between the duration of single and that of concurrent multiple type-specific prevalent HPV infections was not significant (P = .9; log-rank test). Concurrent, prevalent detection of additional HPV types did not change the likelihood of viral persistence.