BACKGROUND: Representing the second cause of cancer-related death after lung cancer in men and breast cancer in women, colorectal cancer (CRC) is a major health problem in Italy. Obesity is reckoned to favor CRC; however, the underlying mechanisms are unclear. Recently, a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the fat mass and obesity associated (FTO) gene was found to be significantly associated with obesity. AIMS: To establish whether the FTO SNP rs9939609 may represent a risk factor for CRC and adenoma in the Italian population. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 1,037 subjects were enrolled in the study and divided in 3 groups: CRC (341 pts., M/F=197/144, mean age=65.17±11.16 years), colorectal adenoma (385 pts., M/F=247/138, mean age=62.49±13.01 years), healthy controls (311 pts., M/F=150/161, mean age=57.31±13.84 years). DNA was extracted from whole blood, and stored frozen for rs9939609 genotyping by real-time PCR. RESULTS: The frequency of the obesity-associated mutated A allele (AA+AT) on the FTO gene was 69.77% among controls, and 71.85% and 65.71% respectively among CRC and polyp patients. Compared to control subjects the AA+AT genotype had no significant effect on the risk for either CRC (OR=1.106; CI 95%=0.788-1.550; p=0.561) or colorectal adenomas (OR=0.830; CI 95%=0.602-1.144; p=0.255). We did not observe any association between the AA genotype and CRC/polyp localization and age at diagnosis. As measured in a patient subset, carriership of the risk alleles did not reflect in a significantly altered BMI. CONCLUSION: The obesity-linked FTO variants do not play a significant role in modulating the colorectal cancer risk in the Italian population.
BACKGROUND: Representing the second cause of cancer-related death after lung cancer in men and breast cancer in women, colorectal cancer (CRC) is a major health problem in Italy. Obesity is reckoned to favor CRC; however, the underlying mechanisms are unclear. Recently, a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the fat mass and obesity associated (FTO) gene was found to be significantly associated with obesity. AIMS: To establish whether the FTO SNP rs9939609 may represent a risk factor for CRC and adenoma in the Italian population. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 1,037 subjects were enrolled in the study and divided in 3 groups: CRC (341 pts., M/F=197/144, mean age=65.17±11.16 years), colorectal adenoma (385 pts., M/F=247/138, mean age=62.49±13.01 years), healthy controls (311 pts., M/F=150/161, mean age=57.31±13.84 years). DNA was extracted from whole blood, and stored frozen for rs9939609 genotyping by real-time PCR. RESULTS: The frequency of the obesity-associated mutated A allele (AA+AT) on the FTO gene was 69.77% among controls, and 71.85% and 65.71% respectively among CRC and polyppatients. Compared to control subjects the AA+AT genotype had no significant effect on the risk for either CRC (OR=1.106; CI 95%=0.788-1.550; p=0.561) or colorectal adenomas (OR=0.830; CI 95%=0.602-1.144; p=0.255). We did not observe any association between the AA genotype and CRC/polyp localization and age at diagnosis. As measured in a patient subset, carriership of the risk alleles did not reflect in a significantly altered BMI. CONCLUSION: The obesity-linked FTO variants do not play a significant role in modulating the colorectal cancer risk in the Italian population.
Authors: Baiyu Yang; Aaron P Thrift; Jane C Figueiredo; Mark A Jenkins; Fredrick R Schumacher; David V Conti; Yi Lin; Aung Ko Win; Paul J Limburg; Sonja I Berndt; Hermann Brenner; Andrew T Chan; Jenny Chang-Claude; Michael Hoffmeister; Thomas J Hudson; Loïc Le Marchand; Polly A Newcomb; Martha L Slattery; Emily White; Ulrike Peters; Graham Casey; Peter T Campbell Journal: Cancer Epidemiol Date: 2016-07-21 Impact factor: 2.984