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Level of education and the risk of cancer in Sweden

Hemminki, Kari LU and Li, Xinjun LU (2003) In Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology 12(8). p.796-802
Abstract

It is well known that certain cancers have shown clusteringin educational and socioeconomic groups, but recent comprehensive data on clustering by education are limited. We determined standardized incidence ratios (SIRs), adjusted for several variables, for cancer among men and women in six educational groups based on the Swedish Family-Cancer Database. People were identified with a certain educational background in the census of year 1970; the comparison group was the largest group, those with <9 years of education. Cancers were followed from years 1971 to 1998. Total cancer risks did not differ much, but at individual sites, the trend was significant, either increasing or decreasing over all educational groups (for 27 of 29 male... (More)

It is well known that certain cancers have shown clusteringin educational and socioeconomic groups, but recent comprehensive data on clustering by education are limited. We determined standardized incidence ratios (SIRs), adjusted for several variables, for cancer among men and women in six educational groups based on the Swedish Family-Cancer Database. People were identified with a certain educational background in the census of year 1970; the comparison group was the largest group, those with <9 years of education. Cancers were followed from years 1971 to 1998. Total cancer risks did not differ much, but at individual sites, the trend was significant, either increasing or decreasing over all educational groups (for 27 of 29 male and 28 of 31 female cancers). University graduates had a decreased risk of tobacco-, alcohol-, and genital infection-related cancers, but male graduates had an excess of colon, prostate, squamous cell skin, nervous system cancer, and melanoma. Male graduates showed a low SIR of 0.50 for stomach cancer and a high SIR of 1.89 for melanoma; female graduates showed a low SIR of 0.43 for lung and cervical cancer and a high SIR of 1.57 for melanoma. The overall weighted population attributable fraction for educational level was 13.8% for men and 16.7% for women, and it was highest, >50%, for stomach cancer in both genders and for cervical and anal cancer in women.

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Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
and
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Educational Status, Female, Humans, Male, Neoplasms/epidemiology, Sweden/epidemiology
in
Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology
volume
12
issue
8
pages
7 pages
publisher
American Association for Cancer Research
external identifiers
  • scopus:0042026360
  • pmid:12917212
ISSN
1055-9965
language
English
LU publication?
no
id
cb69f021-2cb9-4b42-bc31-bfadebb16d29
alternative location
http://cebp.aacrjournals.org/content/12/8/796.long
date added to LUP
2019-01-30 11:48:42
date last changed
2024-01-15 13:16:16
@article{cb69f021-2cb9-4b42-bc31-bfadebb16d29,
  abstract     = {{<p>It is well known that certain cancers have shown clusteringin educational and socioeconomic groups, but recent comprehensive data on clustering by education are limited. We determined standardized incidence ratios (SIRs), adjusted for several variables, for cancer among men and women in six educational groups based on the Swedish Family-Cancer Database. People were identified with a certain educational background in the census of year 1970; the comparison group was the largest group, those with &lt;9 years of education. Cancers were followed from years 1971 to 1998. Total cancer risks did not differ much, but at individual sites, the trend was significant, either increasing or decreasing over all educational groups (for 27 of 29 male and 28 of 31 female cancers). University graduates had a decreased risk of tobacco-, alcohol-, and genital infection-related cancers, but male graduates had an excess of colon, prostate, squamous cell skin, nervous system cancer, and melanoma. Male graduates showed a low SIR of 0.50 for stomach cancer and a high SIR of 1.89 for melanoma; female graduates showed a low SIR of 0.43 for lung and cervical cancer and a high SIR of 1.57 for melanoma. The overall weighted population attributable fraction for educational level was 13.8% for men and 16.7% for women, and it was highest, &gt;50%, for stomach cancer in both genders and for cervical and anal cancer in women.</p>}},
  author       = {{Hemminki, Kari and Li, Xinjun}},
  issn         = {{1055-9965}},
  keywords     = {{Educational Status; Female; Humans; Male; Neoplasms/epidemiology; Sweden/epidemiology}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{8}},
  pages        = {{796--802}},
  publisher    = {{American Association for Cancer Research}},
  series       = {{Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology}},
  title        = {{Level of education and the risk of cancer in Sweden}},
  url          = {{http://cebp.aacrjournals.org/content/12/8/796.long}},
  volume       = {{12}},
  year         = {{2003}},
}