Blood cadmium levels as a marker for early lung cancer detection
Marcin Lener, Edyta Reszka, Wojciech Marciniak, Monika Lesicka, Piotr Baszuk, Ewa Jabłońska, Katarzyna Białkowska, Magdalena Muszyńska, Sandra Pietrzak, Róża Derkacz, Tomasz Grodzki, Janusz Wójcik, Małgorzata Wojtyś, Tadeusz Dębniak, Cezary Cybulski, Jacek Gronwald, Bartosz Kubisa, Jarosław Pieróg, Piotr Waloszczyk, Rodney J. Scott, Anna Jakubowska, Steven A. Narod, Jan Lubiński
Abstract
BACKGROUND: We assessed whether blood cadmium levels were associated with incident lung cancer and could be used in the context of a screening program for early-stage lung cancer. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We measured blood cadmium levels among 205 lung cancer patients and 205 matched controls. Cases and controls were matched for sex, age and smoking history (total pack-years, years since cessation for former smokers). RESULTS: The odds ratio for those in the highest quartile of cadmium level (versus lowest) was four-fold (OR = 4.41, 95 % CI:2.01-9.67, p < 0.01). The association was present in former smokers (OR = 16.8, 95 % CI:3.96-71.2, p < 0.01), but not in current smokers (OR = 1.23, 95 % CI: 0.34-4.38) or in never smokers (OR not defined). Among former smokers, the association was present in both early- and late-stage lung cancer. CONCLUSION: Blood cadmium levels may be a marker to help with the early detection of lung cancer among former smokers.