The proposed research is a systematic examination of cancer risk in relation to family history of cancer in a large population-based genealogy. It is clear from numerous epidemiologic and genetic studies that a family history of many kinds of cancer increases a person's risk of cancer, and in several cases mutations of particular genes have been identified that are associated with familial cancer syndromes. However, for the vast majority of cancers, the specific contributions of inherited predisposition to cancer risk have not been well described. We propose to examine cancer risk associated with family histories of cancer in a large cohort of people identified through the Utah Population Database (UPDB), a resource that contains pedigree information up to six generations deep on over one million individuals. The genealogy records are linked on a continuing basis to the records of the Utah Cancer Registry, which has recorded all cancers diagnosed in Utah since 1966. We will examine alternative methods for estimating familial aggregation of cancer, estimate relative and attributable risks associated with family history for 36 different kinds of cancer, and examine the patterns of familial coaggregation of cancer. In order to accomplish these goals, we will incorporate new follow-up information into UPDB that we will make available to all users of the database.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Type
First Independent Research Support & Transition (FIRST) Awards (R29)
Project #
5R29CA069421-03
Application #
2733203
Study Section
Epidemiology and Disease Control Subcommittee 2 (EDC)
Program Officer
Seminara, Daniela
Project Start
1996-07-01
Project End
2001-06-30
Budget Start
1998-07-01
Budget End
1999-06-30
Support Year
3
Fiscal Year
1998
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Utah
Department
Family Medicine
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
City
Salt Lake City
State
UT
Country
United States
Zip Code
84112
Kerber, Richard A; O'Brien, Elizabeth (2005) A cohort study of cancer risk in relation to family histories of cancer in the Utah population database. Cancer 103:1906-15
Cawthon, Richard M; Smith, Ken R; O'Brien, Elizabeth et al. (2003) Association between telomere length in blood and mortality in people aged 60 years or older. Lancet 361:393-5
Cawthon, Richard M (2002) Telomere measurement by quantitative PCR. Nucleic Acids Res 30:e47
Boucher, K M; Kerber, R A (2001) Measures of familial aggregation as predictors of breast-cancer risk. J Epidemiol Biostat 6:377-85
Kerber, R A; O'Brien, E; Smith, K R et al. (2001) Familial excess longevity in Utah genealogies. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 56:B130-9
Kerber, R A; Slattery, M L; Potter, J D et al. (1998) Risk of colon cancer associated with a family history of cancer or colorectal polyps: the diet, activity, and reproduction in colon cancer study. Int J Cancer 78:157-60
Kerber, R A; Slattery, M L (1997) Comparison of self-reported and database-linked family history of cancer data in a case-control study. Am J Epidemiol 146:244-8