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. 2019 May-Dec;1(1):vdz031.
doi: 10.1093/noajnl/vdz031. Epub 2019 Sep 29.

Immune factors preceding diagnosis of glioma: a Prostate Lung Colorectal Ovarian Cancer Screening Trial nested case-control study

Ivo S Muskens  1 , Mi Zhou  2 , Lucie Mccoy  3 , Paige M Bracci  2 , Helen M Hansen  3 , W James Gauderman  4 , John K Wiencke  3 , Margaret R Wrensch  3 , Joseph L Wiemels  1   2
Affiliations

Immune factors preceding diagnosis of glioma: a Prostate Lung Colorectal Ovarian Cancer Screening Trial nested case-control study

Ivo S Muskens et al. Neurooncol Adv. 2019 May-Dec.

Abstract

Background: Epidemiological studies of adult glioma have identified genetic and environmental risk factors, but much remains unclear. The aim of the current study was to evaluate anthropometric, disease-related, and prediagnostic immune-related factors for relationship with glioma risk.

Methods: We conducted a nested case-control study among the intervention arm of the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal, and Ovarian Cancer (PLCO) Screening Trial. One hundred and twenty-four glioma cases were identified and each matched to four controls. Baseline characteristics were collected at enrollment and were evaluated for association with glioma status. Serum specimens were collected at yearly intervals and were analyzed for immune-related factors including TGF-β1, TNF-α, total IgE, and allergen-specific IgE. Immune factors were evaluated at baseline in a multivariate conditional logistic regression model, along with one additional model that incorporated the latest available measurement.

Results: A family history of glioma among first-degree relatives was associated with increased glioma risk (OR = 4.41, P = .002). In multivariate modeling of immune factors at baseline, increased respiratory allergen-specific IgE was inversely associated with glioma risk (OR for allergen-specific IgE > 0.35 PAU/L: 0.59, P = .03). A logistic regression model that incorporated the latest available measurements found a similar association for allergen-specific IgE (P = .005) and showed that elevated TGF-β1 was associated with increased glioma risk (P-value for trend <.0001).

Conclusion: The results from this prospective prediagnostic study suggest that several immune-related factors are associated with glioma risk. The association observed for TGF-β1 when sampling closer to the time of diagnosis may reflect the nascent brain tumor's feedback on immune function.

Keywords: PLCO; TGF-β1; allergy; glioma.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Boxplots depicting TGF-β1 and TNF-α by case-control status and by measurement year. The boxplots depict the measures of TGF-β1 and TNF-α by case–control status for each of the years of measurements (0, 1, 2, 4, and 5). No measurements were taken at year 3. P-values were derived from t-tests.
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