Liver cancer in Thailand. II. A case-control study of hepatocellular carcinoma

✍ Scribed by Petcharin Srivatanakul; D. Maxwell Parkin; Myriam Khlat; Dhirapol Chenvidhya; Pornarong Chotiwan; Somchai Insiripong; Kristan A. L'Abbé; Christopher P. Wild

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1991
• Tongue: French
• Weight: 537 KB
• Volume: 48
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0020-7136
• DOI: 10.1002/ijc.2910480303

✦ Synopsis

Potential risk factors for hepatocellular carcinoma were investigated in a case-control study among inhabitants of north east Thailand. Sixty-five cases from 3 hospitals, with matched controls, were included. Infection with hepatitis-B virus was the major risk factor-chronic carriers of HB surface antigen had an estimated relative risk of 15.2. Infection with hepatitis-C virus appeared to be rare. No increase in risk was found with recent aflatoxin intake, as estimated by consumption of possibly contaminated foods, or by measuring aflatoxinalbumin adducts in serum. Regular use of alcohol (2 or more glasses of spirits per week) was associated with a nonsignificant elevation in risk (0.r. = 3.4, 95% c.i. 0.8-14.6). but the number of regular drinkers in the population was small. The meaning of an apparent protection conferred by certain food items is uncertain, but a possible role of betel nut in the aetiology deserves further investigation.