A recent study showed that high levels of particulate matter are associated with a higher incidence of cancer in the upper gastrointestinal tract in the head and neck. The study, published in Scientific Reports on November 12, is the result of a multi-institutional collaboration with researchers from Wayne State University, Johns Hopkins University, and Massachusetts General Brigham Hospital in the United States of America.
Air pollution generally refers to the contamination of the indoor and outdoor environment with gases, ozone, and fine particles. Air pollution has multiple well-known adverse health effects, including lung diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, asthma, cardiovascular disease, and liver disease. Specifically, fine particles less than 2.5 microns in diameter have been linked to certain types of cancer.
Upper gastrointestinal cancer of the head and neck
Head and neck tissues are particularly vulnerable to air pollution due to direct contact with these particles. There is also a known strong association between tobacco smoking and squamous cell carcinoma, the most common of the head and neck.
While there are known non-environmental links to these cancers, including higher incidences of nasopharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas associated with HPV infection and nasopharyngeal cancers associated with Epstein-Barr virus infection, air pollution plays a role in the development of the disease.
“There has been previous research on air pollution, but the effects have been mostly linked to cancers within the lower respiratory tract,” said John Kramer, associate professor of otolaryngology at Wayne State University School of Medicine, according to EurekAlert.
The association with head and neck cancer is more difficult to show, as it is much less common than lung cancer, and since it is also caused by smoking like lung cancer, we wanted to explore any associations. It is assumed that head and neck cancer is linked to substances we breathe in that affect the lining of the head and neck. “We see a lot of cases of coming into contact with carcinogenic substances or collecting them in the body, where cancer can occur.”
Carcinogenic particles
The research used data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program’s national cancer database in the United States from 2002 to 2012. The analysis revealed an association between types of head and neck cancers and exposure to particulate matter. Which are less than 2.5 microns in diameter at different time periods.
“Environmental health and personal health are closely linked,” said co-author Dr. Amanda Dilger, MD, of the University of Massachusetts School of Public Health and a member of the Massachusetts General Hospital Brigham Health Care System. “Our study highlights the need to improve air quality standards from In order to reduce the risk of cancer, including head and neck cancer.