Oncology · Public Health · 2 h ago
Socioeconomic disadvantage and phenotypic aging linked to upper GI cancer risk
A longitudinal UK Biobank cohort study of 315,380 participants examined socioeconomic status and phenotypic age acceleration in relation to upper gastrointestinal cancer. Over a median 12.5 years, both factors were associated with higher incidence, and phenotypic age acceleration partially mediated the association with socioeconomic status.
- Cohort included 315,380 UK Biobank participants.
- There were 1,289 incident upper GI cancers.
- Low SES and phenotypic aging were independently associated with risk.
- Phenotypic age acceleration mediated 7.94% of the SES association.
Researchers analyzed 315,380 UK Biobank participants who were free of upper gastrointestinal cancers (UGICs) at baseline. They classified socioeconomic status (SES) using latent class analysis and measured biological aging with phenotypic age acceleration (PhenoAgeAccel). Multivariable Cox models assessed associations with incident UGICs, alongside interaction and mediation analyses.
During a median follow-up of 12.5 years, 1,289 participants developed UGICs. Compared with participants in the high-SES group, those with low SES had a higher risk (hazard ratio [HR], 1.74; 95% CI, 1.42–2.14). Biologically older participants also had higher risk than biologically younger participants (HR, 1.66; 95% CI, 1.41–1.97). The authors reported a joint association of low SES and accelerated phenotypic aging with cancer incidence, although formal additive and multiplicative interactions were not significant. PhenoAgeAccel mediated 7.94% of the association between SES and UGICs.
The findings suggest that social disadvantage and phenotypic aging may help identify populations with differing UGIC risk, but they do not establish causality or support changes to screening or prevention. The analysis is observational and based on UK Biobank participants; the reported risk estimates may not generalize to other populations.
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BMC Public Health: Socioeconomic inequalities, phenotypic aging, and the risk of incident upper gastrointestinal cancers ↗This is an automated AI-condensed summary that has not yet been reviewed by an editor. Always consult the full item at the original source.