Using ‘Big Data’ To Explore and Identify Potential Risk Factors for Early-Onset Colorectal Cancer
Video
Team Information
Team Members
Lulu Zhang, Data Associate, Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health
Jianjiu Chen, Postdoctoral Research Scientist, Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health
Piero Dalerba, Assistant Professor, Dept of Pathology and Cell Biology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center
Mary Beth Terry, Professor of Epidemiology (in Environmental Health Sciences), Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center
Faculty Advisor: Wan Yang, Assistant Professor of Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health
Abstract
There has been an increase in colorectal cancer cases in recent years among younger individuals. This study is the first stage in identifying potential risk factors and mechanisms associated with these increases in incidence. We used large scale survey data representative of the US population from NHANES and NHIS to estimate risk factor distributions from 1977 to 2016 among individuals ages 25-49 or White or Black race. To estimate ecological associations with colorectal cancer incidence, we fitted quasi-Poisson models to age- and calendar- year specific incidence data from the NCI’s SEER program from 1977 to 2016, for current and 10-year lagged risk factor distributions. Analyses were stratified by gender. We examined several diet variables and health conditions, both established and unestablished as risk factors. Some associations agreed with the current literature while other were opposite of what we anticipated. The attributable risk (%) for calcium for both methods were consistently negative which was consistent with our hypothesis, however fat was protective which did not match our expectations. These results helped with the hypothesis generating first stage of the study and next steps will be to investigate the underlying mechanisms of risk factors that stood out and how they tie in to early-onset CRC.
Contact this Team
Contact: Jaan Altosaar (use form to send email)
