Cancer Cluster Investigations: Review of the Past and Proposals for the Future
Residential clusters of non-communicable diseases are a source of enduring public concern, and at times, controversy. Many clusters reported to public health agencies by concerned citizens are accompanied by expectations that investigations will uncover a cause of disease. While goals, methods and c...
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doaj-461024e72a42480fb06c9f86bf7a4e612020-11-24T22:36:10ZengMDPI AGInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health1660-46012014-01-011121479149910.3390/ijerph110201479ijerph110201479Cancer Cluster Investigations: Review of the Past and Proposals for the FutureMichael Goodman0Judy S. LaKind1Jerald A. Fagliano2Timothy L. Lash3Joseph L. Wiemels4Deborah M. Winn5Chirag Patel6Juliet Van Eenwyk7Betsy A. Kohler8Enrique F. Schisterman9Paul Albert10Donald R. Mattison11Department of Epidemiology, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, 1518 Clifton Road, Atlanta, GA 30322, USALaKind Associates, LLC, 106 Oakdale Avenue, Catonsville, MD 21228, USADivision of Epidemiology, Environmental and Occupational Health, New Jersey Department of Health, P.O. Box 369, Trenton, NJ 08625, USADepartment of Epidemiology, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, 1518 Clifton Road, Atlanta, GA 30322, USADivision of Cancer Epidemiology, Department of Epidemiology & Biostatistics, School of Medicine, University of California, Helen Diller Family Cancer Research Building, HD 274 1450 3rd Street, San Francisco, MC 0520, San Francisco, CA 94158, USADivision of Cancer Control and Population Sciences, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, 9609 Medical Center Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892, USASchool of Medicine, Stanford University, 1265 Welch Road, Stanford, CA 94305, USAWashington State Department of Health, P.O. Box 47812, Olympia, WA 98504, USANorth American Association of Central Cancer Registries, Inc., 2121 W. White Oaks Drive, Suite B, Springfield, IL 62704, USADivision of Epidemiology, Statistics and Prevention Research, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, 6100 Executive Blvd., Bethesda, MD 20892, USADivision of Epidemiology, Statistics and Prevention Research, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, 6100 Executive Blvd., Bethesda, MD 20892, USARisk Sciences International, 325 Dalhousie Street, Ottawa, ON K1N 7G2, CanadaResidential clusters of non-communicable diseases are a source of enduring public concern, and at times, controversy. Many clusters reported to public health agencies by concerned citizens are accompanied by expectations that investigations will uncover a cause of disease. While goals, methods and conclusions of cluster studies are debated in the scientific literature and popular press, investigations of reported residential clusters rarely provide definitive answers about disease etiology. Further, it is inherently difficult to study a cluster for diseases with complex etiology and long latency (e.g., most cancers). Regardless, cluster investigations remain an important function of local, state and federal public health agencies. Challenges limiting the ability of cluster investigations to uncover causes for disease include the need to consider long latency, low statistical power of most analyses, uncertain definitions of cluster boundaries and population of interest, and in- and out-migration. A multi-disciplinary Workshop was held to discuss innovative and/or under-explored approaches to investigate cancer clusters. Several potentially fruitful paths forward are described, including modern methods of reconstructing residential history, improved approaches to analyzing spatial data, improved utilization of electronic data sources, advances using biomarkers of carcinogenesis, novel concepts for grouping cases, investigations of infectious etiology of cancer, and “omics” approaches.http://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/11/2/1479cancercluster investigationscancer biomarkerscase groupingleukemiaexposomeinfection |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Michael Goodman Judy S. LaKind Jerald A. Fagliano Timothy L. Lash Joseph L. Wiemels Deborah M. Winn Chirag Patel Juliet Van Eenwyk Betsy A. Kohler Enrique F. Schisterman Paul Albert Donald R. Mattison |
spellingShingle |
Michael Goodman Judy S. LaKind Jerald A. Fagliano Timothy L. Lash Joseph L. Wiemels Deborah M. Winn Chirag Patel Juliet Van Eenwyk Betsy A. Kohler Enrique F. Schisterman Paul Albert Donald R. Mattison Cancer Cluster Investigations: Review of the Past and Proposals for the Future International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health cancer cluster investigations cancer biomarkers case grouping leukemia exposome infection |
author_facet |
Michael Goodman Judy S. LaKind Jerald A. Fagliano Timothy L. Lash Joseph L. Wiemels Deborah M. Winn Chirag Patel Juliet Van Eenwyk Betsy A. Kohler Enrique F. Schisterman Paul Albert Donald R. Mattison |
author_sort |
Michael Goodman |
title |
Cancer Cluster Investigations: Review of the Past and Proposals for the Future |
title_short |
Cancer Cluster Investigations: Review of the Past and Proposals for the Future |
title_full |
Cancer Cluster Investigations: Review of the Past and Proposals for the Future |
title_fullStr |
Cancer Cluster Investigations: Review of the Past and Proposals for the Future |
title_full_unstemmed |
Cancer Cluster Investigations: Review of the Past and Proposals for the Future |
title_sort |
cancer cluster investigations: review of the past and proposals for the future |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
series |
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health |
issn |
1660-4601 |
publishDate |
2014-01-01 |
description |
Residential clusters of non-communicable diseases are a source of enduring public concern, and at times, controversy. Many clusters reported to public health agencies by concerned citizens are accompanied by expectations that investigations will uncover a cause of disease. While goals, methods and conclusions of cluster studies are debated in the scientific literature and popular press, investigations of reported residential clusters rarely provide definitive answers about disease etiology. Further, it is inherently difficult to study a cluster for diseases with complex etiology and long latency (e.g., most cancers). Regardless, cluster investigations remain an important function of local, state and federal public health agencies. Challenges limiting the ability of cluster investigations to uncover causes for disease include the need to consider long latency, low statistical power of most analyses, uncertain definitions of cluster boundaries and population of interest, and in- and out-migration. A multi-disciplinary Workshop was held to discuss innovative and/or under-explored approaches to investigate cancer clusters. Several potentially fruitful paths forward are described, including modern methods of reconstructing residential history, improved approaches to analyzing spatial data, improved utilization of electronic data sources, advances using biomarkers of carcinogenesis, novel concepts for grouping cases, investigations of infectious etiology of cancer, and “omics” approaches. |
topic |
cancer cluster investigations cancer biomarkers case grouping leukemia exposome infection |
url |
http://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/11/2/1479 |
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