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Abstract Background Organophosphorus pesticides (OP) have been associated with various human health conditions. Animal experiments and in-vitro models suggested that OP may also affect the gut microbiota. We examined associations between ambient chronic exposure to OP and gut microbial changes in humans. Methods We recruited 190 participants from a community-based epidemiologic study of Parkinson’s disease living in a region known for heavy agricultural pesticide use in California. Of these, 61% of participants had Parkinson’s disease and their mean age was 72 years. Microbiome and predicted metagenome data were generated by 16S rRNA gene sequencing of fecal samples. Ambient long-term OP exposures were assessed using pesticide application records combined with residential addresses in a geographic information system. We examined gut microbiome differences due to OP exposures, specifically differences in microbial diversity based on the Shannon index and Bray–Curtis dissimilarities, and differential taxa abundance and predicted Metacyc pathway expression relying on regression models and adjusting for potential confounders. Results OP exposure was not associated with alpha or beta diversity of the gut microbiome. However, the predicted metagenome was sparser and less evenly expressed among those highly exposed to OP (p = 0.04). Additionally, we found that the abundance of two bacterial families, 22 genera, and the predicted expression of 34 Metacyc pathways were associated with long-term OP exposure. These pathways included perturbed processes related to cellular respiration, increased biosynthesis and degradation of compounds related to bacterial wall structure, increased biosynthesis of RNA/DNA precursors, and decreased synthesis of Vitamin B1 and B6. Conclusion In support of previous animal studies and in-vitro findings, our results suggest that ambient chronic OP pesticide exposure alters gut microbiome composition and its predicted metabolism in humans.

Abstract Background Skin cancer is the most common secondary malignancy among young adult childhood cancer survivors (YA‐CCS). Skin examination to detect skin cancer early (including melanoma as well as basal or squamous cell skin cancers), both physician‐based (PSE) and self‐skin exam (SSE), is recommended, particularly for radiotherapy‐exposed YA‐CCS who are at high risk of developing skin cancer. Methods Awareness and prevalence of skin examination and demographic, clinical, and healthcare correlates were examined in a population‐based sample of YA‐CCS with diverse cancer types excluding melanoma. Descriptive frequencies and logistic regression models were conducted using sample weights to correct for non‐response bias with PSE, SSE and adherence to both as outcomes. Results The sample comprised 1064 participants with 53% Latino. Eight percent of participants were aware of the need for skin examination; 9% reported receipt of PSE within past 2 years; 35% reported regular SSE; and 6% were adherent to both. Among the radiotherapy‐treated, 10% were aware of the need for skin examination, 10% reported recent PSE; 38% reported regular SSE; and 8% were adherent to both. Healthcare and clinical factors including healthcare self‐efficacy, engagement in cancer‐related follow‐up care, greater treatment intensity and greater number of treatment‐related late effects were positively associated with PSE and SSE. Latino YA‐CCS were less likely to engage in PSE and SSE. Conclusion(s) Adherence to recommended screening for skin cancer was low in this at‐risk population, notably for YA‐CCS exposed to radiotherapy. The development of effective strategies to expand skin cancer screening is needed in this at‐risk population.

Abstract Background Adolescents and young adults (AYA), patients age 15‐39, may experience worse outcomes than pediatric and adult patients. The aim of this paper was to document survival disparities associated with insurance status across the AYA age continuum in the United States. Methods We utilized the Surveillance, Epidemiologic, and End Results database to identify 66 556 AYA patients between 2007 and 2014 with 10 International Classification of Childhood Cancer diagnoses and calculated the Cox proportional hazard ratios of death for those with public or no insurance status compared to private insurance. The odds ratios of having a late stage of diagnosis by insurance status were also calculated. Results Insurance status was a statistically significant predictor of death for lymphoid leukemia (age 15‐19, 30‐34, and 35‐39), acute myeloid leukemia (age 15‐19 and 25‐29), Hodgkin lymphoma (all ages), non‐Hodgkin lymphoma (age 20‐24, 25‐29, 30‐34, and 35‐39), astrocytomas (age 30‐34), other gliomas (age 25‐29, 30‐34, and 35‐39), hepatic carcinomas (age 25‐29), fibrosarcomas, peripheral nerve and other fibrous tumors (age 30‐34), malignant gonadal germ cell tumors (age 20‐24, 25‐29, 30‐34, and 35‐39), and other and unspecified carcinomas (age 20‐24, 25‐29, 30‐34, and 35‐39), independent of stage at diagnosis. This hazard increased with age for most cancer types. Insurance status strongly predicted the odds of a metastatic cancer diagnosis for lymphoma, fibrosarcomas (age 15‐19), germ cell tumors, and other carcinomas. Conclusions AYA in the US experience disparities in cancer survival based on insurance status, independent of late stage of presentation. Patients age 26‐39 may be especially vulnerable to health outcomes associated with poor socioeconomic status, treatment disparities, and poor access to care.

Background: Inherited factors and maternal behaviors are thought to play an important role in the etiology of several congenital malformations. Twin studies can offer additional evidence regarding the contribution of genetic and lifestyle factors to common birth anomalies, but few large-scale studies have been reported. Methods: We included data from twins (20,803 pairs) from the population-based California Twin Program. We compared concordance in monozygotic (MZ) to dizygotic (DZ) twins for the following birth anomalies: clubfoot, oral cleft, spina bifida, muscular dystrophy, deafness, cerebral palsy, strabismus, and congenital heart defects. Each birth anomaly was also examined for the associations with birth characteristics (birthweight and birth order) and parental exposures (age, smoking, and parental education). Results: The overall prevalence of any selected birth anomaly in California twins was 38 per 1,000 persons, with a slightly decreasing trend from 1957–1982. For pairwise concordance in 6,752 MZ and 7,326 like-sex DZ twin pairs, high MZ:DZ concordance ratios were observed for clubfoot (CR 5.91; P = 0.043) and strabismus (CR 2.52; P = 0.001). Among the total 20,803 pairs, parental smoking was significantly associated with risk of spina bifida (OR 3.48; 95% CI, 1.48–8.18) and strabismus (OR 1.61; 95% CI, 1.28–2.03). A significant quadratic trend of increasing risk for clubfoot, spina bifida, and strabismus was found when examining whether father smoked, mother smoked, or both parents smoked relative to non-smoking parents (P = 0.029, 0.026, and 0.0005, respectively). Conclusions: Our results provide evidence for a multifactorial etiology underlying selected birth anomalies. Further research is needed to understand the biological mechanisms.

United States Hispanics have seven times lower melanoma incidence rates than non-Hispanic whites (NHW). It is unclear whether this difference can be explained solely by phenotypic risk factors, like darker skin, or whether modifiable risk factors, like sun exposure, also play a role. The purpose of this paper is to summarize what is currently known about melanoma risk factors among Hispanics and NHWs, and whether or not those differences could explain the difference in melanoma incidence. Through literature review, relative risks and prevalence of melanoma risk factors in Hispanics and NHWs were identified and used to calculate the expected rate in Hispanics and rate ratio compared to NHWs. We found that melanoma risk factors either have similar frequency in Hispanics and NHWs (e.g., many large nevi) or are less frequent in Hispanics but do not explain a high proportion of disease variation (e.g., red hair). Considering current knowledge of risk factor prevalence, we found that melanoma incidence rates in the two groups should actually be similar. Sun exposure behavior among Hispanics may contribute to the explanation for the 7-fold difference in melanoma rates. Currently, limited data exist on sun exposure behavior among Hispanics, but possibilities for improving primary prevention by further studying these practices are substantial.