Smoking significantly increases colorectal cancer risk in women to a greater degree than it does in men
Although smoking and alcohol both increase
likelihood for colorectal cancer, there are gender differences in
the effects of the two environmental risk factors, according to
a presentation at the annual meeting of the American College of
Gastroenterology.
“Understanding interactions between genetic
and environmental factors, such as smoking and alcohol use, is critical
for colorectal cancer risk stratification, and will help us design
effective screening strategies,” said presenter Anna L. Zisman,
MD.
Dr. Zisman and her American colleagues looked
at women’s susceptibility compared with men’s using a large database
from over 350 teaching and community hospitals. In regression analysis
of gender, tobacco and alcohol use, they found that while age of
onset of colorectal cancer was slightly younger in males than females
in the non-smoking/non-drinking group, current smokers had a markedly
decreased age of presentation for both men and women. Similarly,
alcohol use was associated with an earlier age of diagnosis in males
and females.
An assessment of the differential sensitivity
to smoking and alcohol use in men and women revealed that women
are sensitive to smoking as a risk factor for colorectal cancer
but not alcohol. “We can see that while both men and women who use
tobacco and alcohol are diagnosed with colorectal cancer at an earlier
age, the effect of tobacco is significantly greater in women,” said
Zisman.
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