Obesity and excess protein and carbohydrate consumption are risk factors for thyroid cancer.

Conflicting data concerning the association between obesity and differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) may be attributed to the lack of records showing dietary intake and inadequate evaluation of nutrient composition. We evaluated 115 DTC patients carefully paired with 103 healthy control individuals by using a structured questionnaire, including a 24-h recordatory during 3 days, to investigate calorie intake and macronutrient (proteins, carbohydrates, and lipids) composition of the diet. We observed that excess weight (body mass index > 25 kg/m(2)) increased individual susceptibility to DTC [odds ratio (OR) = 3.787; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.115-6.814; P < 0.0001). This augmented risk was evident in women (OR = 1.925; 95% CI = 1.110-3.338; P = 0.0259) but not in men (P = 0.3498). Excess calorie intake was more frequent in patients with DTC than in controls (OR = 5.890; 95% CI = 3.124-11.103; P < 0.0001), and both excess protein (OR = 4.601; 95% CI = 1.634-12.954; P = 0.0039) and carbohydrate (OR = 4.905; 95% CI = 2.593-9.278; P < 0.0001) consumption were associated with an increased risk of DTC, contrarily to lipid/fiber intake and physical activity (P = 0.894 and 0.5932, respectively). In conclusion, our data indicate that overweight and risk of DTC are associated with higher protein and carbohydrate consumption than the rates recommended by the World Health Organization. The nutritional orientation should be part of preventive strategy targets designed to combat the increasing incidence of both obesity and DTC.

Lack of influence of glutathione S-transferase genotype profile on cancer susceptibility in smokers and nonsmokers.

BACKGROUND: The glutathione-S-transferase (GST) gene family has an important role in the biotransformation and detoxification of different xenobiotics and endogenous carcinogens. GST profile has been associated to an increased risk for several types of tumors in different populations, but ethnic stratification makes data interpretation difficult. The Brazilian population represents a unique model in which the types and frequencies of GST gene polymorphisms are less influenced by ethnicity. MATERIAL/METHODS: To evaluate the influence of GST profile in different age and gender groups regarding the risk of developing cancer and its relationship to smoking habit, the GSTT1, GSTM1, and GSTP1 genotypes of 785 Brazilian patients with cancer and 873 cancer-free controls paired on the basis of sex, age, ethnicity, diet and exercise routine, lifetime occupational history, smoking history, general health conditions, and previous diseases were compared. RESULTS: A univariate logistic regression analysis demonstrated that age over 45 years (p=0.0417) and smoking (p=0.0015) were related to cancer. Multivariate analysis confirmed the importance of advanced age in susceptibility to cancer (p=0.0001). It was also observed that smoking significantly increased the risk of cancer among individuals over 45 years old (OR: 1.825, 95%CI: 1.241-2.682). However, no correlation between risk of cancer, smoking habit, age, or gender and any of the studied GST polymorphisms was found. CONCLUSIONS: It is suggested that GST profile does not exert an important impact on the influence of tobacco smoking on cancer risk.