title: Metabolic syndrome and hepatocellular carcinoma risk.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has been associated to diabetes and obesity, but a possible association with the metabolic syndrome (MetS) and its potential interaction with hepatitis is open to discussion.
  
  
  METHODS
  We analysed data from an Italian case-control study, including 185 HCC cases and 404 controls. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were computed from unconditional logistic regression models.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among the MetS components, diabetes and obesity (i.e, body mass index (BMI)≥30 kg m(-2)) were positively associated to HCC risk, with ORs of 4.33 (95% CI, 1.89-9.86) and 1.97 (95% CI, 1.03-3.79), respectively. The ORs for the MetS were 4.06 (95% CI, 1.33-12.38) defining obesity as BMI≥25, and 1.92 (95% CI, 0.38-9.76) defining it as BMI≥30. The risk increased with the number of MetS components, up to an almost four-fold excess risk among subjects with ≥2 MetS factors. Among subjects without chronic infection with hepatitis B and/or C, the OR for those with ≥2 MetS components was over six-fold elevated. There was no consistent association in subjects with serological evidence of hepatitis B and/or C infection.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study found that the risk of HCC increases with the number of MetS components in subjects not chronically infected with hepatitis viruses.
authors.affiliation: Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri, via G. La Masa 19, 20156 Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Turati
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Talamini
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Pelucchi
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Polesel
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Franceschi
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Crispo
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Izzo
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: La Vecchia
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Boffetta
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Montella
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006505:Hepatitis / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity