Background It is uncertain whether male circumcision reduces the risks of penile human papillomavirus (HPV) infection in the man and of cervical cancer in his female partner. Methods We pooled data on 1913 couples enrolled in one of seven case-control studies of cervical carcinoma in situ and cervical cancer in five countries. Circumcision status was self-reported, and the accuracy of the data was confirmed by physical examination at three study sites. The presence or absence of penile HPV DNA was assessed by a polymerase-chain-reaction assay in 1520 men and yielded a valid result in the case of 1139 men (74.9 percent). Results Penile HPV was detected in 166 of the 847 uncircumcised men (19.6 percent) and in 16 of the 292 circumcised men (5.5 percent). After adjustment for age at first intercourse, lifetime number of sexual partners, and other potential confounders, circumcised men were less likely than uncircumcised men to have HPV infection (odds ratio, 0.37; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.16 to 0.85). Monogamous women whose male partners had six or more sexual partners and were circumcised had a lower risk of cervical cancer than women whose partners were uncircumcised (adjusted odds ratio, 0.42; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.23 to 0.79). Results were similar in the subgroup of men in whom circumcision was confirmed by medical examination. Conclusions Male circumcision is associated with a reduced risk of penile HPV infection and, in the case of men with a history of multiple sexual partners, a reduced risk of cervical cancer in their current female partners.

HSV-2 infection may act in conjunction with HPV infection to increase the risk of invasive cervical carcinoma.

Objective To provide an overview of the breadth and validity of claimed associations between physical activity and risk of developing or dying from cancer. Design Umbrella review. Data sources We searched Medline, Embase, Cochrane Database and Web of Science. Eligibility criteria for selecting studies Systematic reviews about physical activity and cancer incidence and cancer mortality in different body sites among general population. Results We included 19 reviews covering 22 cancer sites, 26 exposure-outcome pairs metaanalyses and 541 original studies. Physical activity was associated with lower risk of seven cancer sites (colon, breast, endometrial, lung, oesophageal, pancreas and meningioma). Only colon (a protective association with recreational physical activity) and breast cancer (a protective association with overall physical activity) were supported by strong evidence and highly suggestive evidence, respectively. Evidence from endometrial, lung, oesophageal, pancreas and meningioma presented hints of uncertainty and bias in the literature (eg, not reaching P values<10 -6 ) showing large between-study heterogeneity and/or not demonstrating a definite direction for the effect when 95% prediction intervals were considered. Four of the 26 meta-analyses showed small study effects and 4 showed excess significance. Conclusion Physical activity is associated with a lower risk of several cancers, but only colon and breast cancer associations were supported by strong or highly suggestive evidence, respectively. Evidence from other cancer sites was less consistent, presenting hints of uncertainty and/or bias.

Socioeconomic differences in head and neck cancer are partially attributable to the distribution of tobacco smoking and alcohol consumption across socioeconomic strata. Additional mediating factors may explain the remaining variation of socioeconomic status on head and neck cancer.

GSTM1 null alone or associated with CYP1A1 increased the risk of head and neck cancer; the CYP2E1PstI mutated allele increased the risk for only oral cancer.

The study aimed to develop and validate an instrument capable of measuring non-adherence to drug treatment in its multiple dimensions.

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Breast cancer is an important cause of morbidity and mortality in Brazil. Some studies have analyzed the potential role of organochlorine compounds in breast cancer etiology. These chemical compounds have been widely used in agriculture and in vector-control programs in Brazil. A case-control study was carried out in the main cancer hospital of the Instituto Nacional de Câncer in Rio de Janeiro to investigate exposure to organochlorinated pesticides as a risk factor for breast cancer. We investigated 177 cases of invasive breast cancer at the hospital, between May 1995 and July 1996, and 350 controls selected among female visitors at the same hospital. In addition to information obtained from interviews, blood samples were taken, to analyze residual amounts of organochlorine by gas chromatography using an electron capture detector. [1,1-Dichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethylene] (DDE) was determined in sera of 457 women from a total of 493 participants who had serum samples available. Residues of hexachlorobenzene were found in 11 women only. No statistically significant association was found between breast cancer risk and serum level of DDE or history of exposure to pesticides. Serum levels of DDE (ng/ml) were similar in patients (median ‫؍‬ 3.1, mean ‫؍‬ 5.1) and controls (median ‫؍‬ 3.1, mean ‫؍‬ 4.8) (p ‫؍‬ 0.93). The age-adjusted odds ratio of breast cancer for women in the upper quintile compared with those in the lowest quintile was 0.90 (95% confidence interval 0.47-1.73). When adjusted for other variables, the risk remained not statistically significant (upper quintile odds ratio ‫؍‬ 0.79, 95% confidence interval 0.39-1.60). In our hands, exposure to organochlorinated pesticides measured by history or serum analysis was thus not a risk factor for breast cancer. Int. J. Cancer 83:596-600, 1999. Wiley-Liss, Inc.Breast cancer is an important cause of death and morbidity in Brazil, especially in the southeast and south of the country, where the city of Rio de Janeiro is located. In 1995, mortality from breast cancer in Rio de Janeiro was 24.23 per 100,000 women (Ministério da Saúde, 1997).Studies on migrants indicate that environmental factors may have an important role in the etiology of breast cancer. Attention has focused on certain environmental chemical compounds. Experimental evidence shows that organochlorines with xenoestrogenic properties act as carcinogens in animals (Davis et al., 1993). Humans are exposed to these compounds mainly via contaminated food. These compounds accumulate in the human body in adipose tissue and persist for decades, being slowly excreted through feces, urine and lactation (Adami et al., 1995). In epidemiological studies, the association between organochlorine residues in serum or adipose tissue and risk of breast cancer has been inconsistent (Falck et al., 1992;Dewailly et al., 1994;Wolff et al., 1993;Krieger et al., 1994;van't Veer et al., 1997;Hunter et al., 1997; López-Carrillo et al., 1997). Most of these studies were conducted in developed countries, where these compo...