HDL-cholesterol and the incidence of lung cancer in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study.
This study examined prospectively the association of baseline plasma HDL-cholesterol levels with incidence of lung cancer in 14,547 members of the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) cohort. There were 259 cases of incident lung cancer identified during follow-up from 1987 through 2000. Results of this study indicated a relatively weak inverse association of HDL-cholesterol with lung cancer that was dependent on smoking status. The hazard ratio of lung cancer incidence in relation to low HDL-cholesterol, adjusted for race, gender, exercise, alcohol consumption, body mass index, triglycerides, age, and cigarette pack-years of smoking, was 1.45 (95% confidence interval 1.10, 1.92). This association was observed among former smokers (hazard ratio: 1.77, 95% confidence interval 1.05, 2.97), but not current smokers. The number of cases among never smokers in this study was too small (n=13) for meaningful interpretation of effect estimates. Excluding cases occurring within 5 years of baseline did not appreciably change the point estimates, suggesting lack of reverse causality. The modest association of low plasma HDL-cholesterol with greater incident lung cancer observed in this study is in agreement with existing case-control studies.
Kucharska-Newton
Anna M
AM
Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC 27514, United States. Anna Newton@unc.edu
Rosamond
Wayne D
WD
Schroeder
Jane C
JC
McNeill
Ann Marie
AM
Coresh
Josef
J
Folsom
Aaron R
AR
D000368:Aged; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000150:complications; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology
D008076:Cholesterol, HDL