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Background Elevated apolipoprotein B (apoB) and elevated apoB/apoA-1 ratio increase the risk of myocardial infarction (MI) and stroke, whereas high apoA-1 is protective. We study how these apolipoproteins are associated with major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs), whether apoA-1 contributes to this association, and whether abnormal values occur decades before such events develop. Methods and findings In the Swedish AMORIS (Apolipoprotein-related MOrtality RISk) cohort study, 137,100 men and women aged 25-84 years were followed an average 17.8 years. ApoB, apoA-1, and the apoB/apoA-1 ratio were analysed in relation to MACEs (non-fatal MI, stroke, and cardiovascular [CV] mortality), yielding 22,473 events. Hazard ratios (HRs) were estimated using Cox regression. Kaplan-Meier estimates were used to investigate the relationship of MACEs with increasing quintiles of the apoB/apoA-1 ratio in all age groups for both sexes. In nested case-control analyses, cases were randomly matched to age- and sex-matched controls, yielding population trajectories for apolipoproteins. Increased level of apoB and increased apoB/apoA-1 ratio were associated with risk of MACE and all clinical sub-components in both men and women across all ages (10th versus first decile in both sexes combined: HR 1.7 for MACE and 2.7 for non-fatal MI). Decreased values of apoA-1 potentiated the impact of apoB at all levels of apoB (on average across apoB range: 40% increase in HR for MACE and 72% increase in HR for non-fatal MI), indicating that the apoB/apoA-1 ratio covers a broader range of persons with dyslipidaemia at risk than apoB alone. In both men and women, MACEs occurred earlier on average for each increasing quintile of the apoB/apoA-1 ratio. Individuals with the highest levels of apoB/apoA-1 ratio experienced CV events on average several years earlier than those with lower ratios. Higher apoB/apoA-1 ratio in cases of MACE versus controls was seen already about 20 years before the event. A li

Previous literature indicates that pre-diagnostic diabetes and blood glucose levels are inversely related to glioma risk. To replicate these findings and determine whether they could be attributed to excess glucose consumption by the preclinical tumour, we used data from the Apolipoprotein MOrtality RISk (AMORIS) (n = 528,580) and the Metabolic syndrome and Cancer project (Me-Can) cohorts (n = 269,365). We identified individuals who were followed for a maximum of 15 years after their first blood glucose test until glioma diagnosis, death, emigration or the end of follow-up. Hazard ratios (HRs), 95% confidence intervals (CIs) and their interactions with time were estimated using Cox time-dependent regression. As expected, pre-diagnostic blood glucose levels were inversely related to glioma risk (AMORIS, P-trend = 0.002; Me-Can, P-trend = 0.04) and pre-diagnostic diabetes (AMORIS, HR = 0.30, 95% CI 0.17 to 0.53). During the year before diagnosis, blood glucose was inversely associated with glioma in the AMORIS (HR = 0.78, 95% CI 0.66 to 0.93) but not the Me-Can cohort (HR = 0.99, 95% CI 0.63 to 1.56). This AMORIS result is consistent with our hypothesis that excess glucose consumption by the preclinical tumour accounts for the inverse association between blood glucose and glioma. We discuss additional hypothetical mechanisms that may explain our paradoxical findings.

Lifestyle-related risk factors such as hyperglycemia and dyslipidemia have been associated with several cancers. However, studies exploring their link with prostate cancer (PCa) clinicopathological characteristics are sparse and inconclusive. Here, we investigated the associations between serum metabolic markers and PCa clinicopathological characteristics. The study comprised 14,294 men from the Swedish Apolipoprotein MOrtality RISk (AMORIS) cohort who were diagnosed with PCa between 1996 and 2011. Univariate and multivariable logistic regression were used to investigate the relation between glucose, triglycerides and total cholesterol and PCa risk categories, PSA, Gleason score, and T-stage. Mean age at time of PCa diagnosis was 69 years. Men with glucose levels >6.9 mmol/L tend to have PSA<4 mu g/L, while those with glucose levels of 5.6-6.9 mmol/L had a greater odds of PSA>20 mu g/L compared to PSA 4.0-9.9 mu g/L. Hypertriglyceridemia was also positively associated with PSA>20 mu g/L. Hyperglycemic men had a greater odds of intermediate-and high-grade PCa and advanced stage or metastatic PCa. Similarly, hypertriglyceridemia was positively associated with high-grade PCa. There was also a trend toward an increased odds of intermediate risk localized PCa and advanced stage PCa among men with hypertriglyceridemia. Total cholesterol did not have any statistically significant association with any of the outcomes studied. Our findings suggest that high serum levels of glucose and triglycerides may influence PCa aggressiveness and severity. Further investigation on the role of markers of glucose and lipid metabolism in influencing PCa aggressiveness and severity is needed as this may help define important targets for intervention.

Prior findings linking allergy and cancer have been inconsistent, which may be driven by diverse assessment methods. We used serum specific immunoglobulin E (IgE) against common inhalant allergens that was assessed prior to cancer diagnosis in studying this association. We selected 8,727 Swedish men and women who had measurements of serum allergen-specific IgE and total IgE between 1992 and 1996. Multivariable Cox regression using age as a timescale was performed to assess the associations of IgE sensitization, defined by any levels of serum specific IgE >= 35 kU/L, with risk of overall and specific cancers. A test for trend was performed by assigning scores derived from allergen-specific IgE levels at baseline as an ordinal scale. Kaplan-Meier curves and log-rank test were used to assess cancer survival by IgE sensitization status. During a mean follow-up of 16 year, 689 persons were diagnosed with cancer. We found an inverse association between IgE sensitization and cancer risk, with a hazard ratio (HR) of 0.83 and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of 0.70-0.99. A similar trend was seen with specific IgE scores overall (P-trend = 0.007) and in women (P-trend = 0.01). Although IgE sensitization was not associated with risk of common site-specific cancers, serum specific IgE scores were inversely associated with melanoma risk in men and women combined, and with risk of female breast and gynecological cancers combined. No association with survival was observed. The association between circulating IgE levels and incident cancer may point toward a role of T-helper 2 (T(H)2)-biased response in development of some cancers.

Background In recent clinical guidelines, individuals with chronic kidney disease are considered to have a similar 10-year absolute risk of cardiovascular death as individuals with diabetes or established cardiovascular disease. There is limited evidence to support this claim. Methods We investigated the 10-year risk for cardiovascular death in individuals with moderate or severe chronic kidney disease (glomerular filtration rate of 30-60 or <30mL/min/1.73m(2), respectively) in a cohort of primary care health check-ups in Stockholm, Sweden (n=295,191, 46% women, 4290 cardiovascular deaths during 10 years follow-up). We also assessed the risk associated with diabetes or cardiovascular disease. The inclusion criteria, exposure, study outcome and follow-up period adhered strictly to the definitions of the European Society of Cardiology guidelines. Results The absolute 10-year risk of cardiovascular death was 3.9% and 14.0% in individuals with moderate and severe chronic kidney disease, respectively, but was substantially lower in women and in younger individuals. The risk in individuals with prevalent diabetes and cardiovascular disease was approximately two and three times higher compared to the risk estimate for moderate chronic kidney disease (hazard ratio (HR) 4.1, 95% confidence interval (CI) 3.8-4.5 and HR 6.2, 95% CI 5.7-6.7 vs. HR 2.3 95% CI 2.0-2.6, respectively) while the risk for individuals with severe chronic kidney disease appeared more congruent to that of diabetes and cardiovascular disease (HR 5.5, 95% CI 3.3-8.9). Conclusions Although moderate chronic kidney disease is an independent predictor for an increased 10-year risk of cardiovascular death, only those with severe chronic kidney disease had similar risk to those with diabetes or cardiovascular disease.

Background: There is evidence that high level of serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) is associated with poorer overall survival in several malignancies, but its link to cancer-specific survival is unclear. Methods: A total of 7895 individuals diagnosed with cancer between 1986 and 1999 were selected for this study. Multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression was used to assess overall and cancer-specific death by the z-score and clinical categories of serum LDH prospectively collected within 3 years before diagnosis. Site-specific analysis was performed for major cancers. Analysis was repeated by different lag times between LDH measurements and diagnosis. Results: At the end of follow-up, 5799 participants were deceased. Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for overall and cancer-specific death in the multivariable model were 1.43 (1.31-1.56) and 1.46 (1.32-1.61), respectively, for high compared with low prediagnostic LDH. Site-specific analysis showed high LDH to correlate with an increased risk of death from prostate, pulmonary, colorectal, gastro-oesophageal, gynaecological and haematological cancers. Serum LDH assessed within intervals closer to diagnosis was more strongly associated with overall and cancer-specific death. Conclusions: Our findings demonstrated an inverse association of baseline serum LDH with cancer-specific survival, corroborating its role in cancer progression.

Background: Abnormal glucose and lipids levels may impact survival after breast cancer (BC) diagnosis, but their association to other causes of mortality such as cardiovascular (CV) disease may result in a competing risk problem. Methods: We assessed serum glucose, triglycerides (TG) and total cholesterol (TC) measured prospectively 3 months to 3 years before diagnosis in 1798 Swedish women diagnosed with any type of BC between 1985 and 1999. In addition to using Cox regression, we employed latent class proportional hazards models to capture any heterogeneity of associations between these markers and BC death. The latter method was extended to include the primary outcome (BC death) and competing outcomes (CV death and death from other causes), allowing latent class-specific hazard estimation for cause-specific deaths. Results: A lack of association between prediagnostic glucose, TG or TC with BC death was observed with Cox regression. With latent class proportional hazards model, two latent classes (Class I and II) were suggested. Class I, comprising the majority (81.5 %) of BC patients, had an increased risk of BC death following higher TG levels (HR: 1.87, 95 % CI: 1.01-3.45 for every log TG increase). Lower overall survival was observed in Class II, but no association for BC death was found. On the other hand, TC positively corresponded to CV death in Class II, and similarly, glucose to death from other causes. Conclusion: Addressing cohort heterogeneity in relation to BC survival is important in understanding the relationship between metabolic markers and cause-specific death in presence of competing outcomes.