History of allergies and autoimmune diseases and risk of brain tumors in adults

✍ Scribed by Alina V. Brenner; Martha S. Linet; Howard A. Fine; William R. Shapiro; Robert G. Selker; Peter M. Black; Peter D. Inskip

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2002
• Tongue: French
• Weight: 90 KB
• Volume: 99
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0020-7136
• DOI: 10.1002/ijc.10320

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

To explore a possible influence of the immune system in the development of brain tumors, we evaluated the relationship between history of allergies and autoimmune diseases and risk of brain tumors within a large, hospital‐based case‐control study. Cases (n = 782) were patients recently diagnosed with glioma (n = 489), meningioma (n = 197) or acoustic neuroma (n = 96) at hospitals in Boston, Phoenix and Pittsburgh (USA). Controls (n =799) were patients hospitalized for a variety of nonmalignant conditions and frequency‐matched to cases by hospital, age, sex, race/ethnicity and distance of residence from hospital. Research nurses collected data by personal interview of patients. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated using unconditional logistic regression. There was a significant inverse association between glioma and history of any allergies (OR = 0.67, 95% CI = 0.52–0.86) or autoimmune diseases (OR = 0.49, 95% CI = 0.35–0.69). No significant associations were evident for meningioma or acoustic neuroma with history of any allergies. An inverse association was observed between meningioma and history of autoimmune diseases (OR = 0.59, 95% CI = 0.38–0.92). There was a suggestion of interaction between allergies and autoimmune diseases on risk of glioma (p = 0.06), with subjects having both conditions being at lowest risk (OR = 0.24, 95% CI = 0.14–0.42). Among the specific conditions, asthma and diabetes showed the most consistent associations (OR = 0.63, 95% CI = 0.43–0.92 and OR = 0.44, 95% CI = 0.27–0.70, respectively). Our results add to evidence that persons with allergies or autoimmune diseases are at reduced risk of glioma. The basis of the associations is not clear, but they might imply a role of immunologic factors in the development of brain tumors. Published 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.