Relationship of serum cholesterol, dietary and plasma beta-carotene with lung cancer in male smokers.
It has been hypothesized that beta-carotene mediates the association between low serum cholesterol levels and increased risk of lung cancer. It follows from this assumption that this association should be greater in population strata with a low intake of beta-carotene than in with those with a high intake. To investigate this hypothesis, we analysed dietary beta-carotene, plasma beta-carotene and serum cholesterol levels in 20 male smokers with lung cancer and 103 male smoking controls, a subsample taken from a larger case-control study on oxidant-antioxidant status. As predicted, we found that the association between low serum cholesterol levels and lung cancer risk was greater in subjects with low plasma beta-carotene. Controlling for plasma beta-carotene decreased but did not negate the magnitude of the inverse association between serum cholesterol and lung cancer. A low serum cholesterol level tended to increase the risk associated with low plasma beta-carotene. Our data suggest that a low plasma beta-carotene does not totally explain the association between serum cholesterol and lung cancer.
Scali
J
J
Groupe d'Epidémiologie Métabolique, INSERM-CRLC, Montpellier, France.
Astre
C
C
Segala
C
C
Gerber
M
M
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002338:Carotenoids / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000097:blood*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood*; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology; D019207:beta Carotene
D019207:beta Carotene; D002338:Carotenoids; D002784:Cholesterol