Cancer Management and Research (Sep 2022)
Risk Factors for Colorectal Adenocarcinoma in an Indigenous Population in East Africa
Abstract
Richard Wismayer,1– 3 Julius Kiwanuka,4 Henry Wabinga,3 Michael Odida3,5 1Department of Surgery, Masaka Regional Referral Hospital, Masaka, Uganda; 2Department of Surgery, Faculty of Health Sciences, Habib Medical School, IUIU University, Kampala, Uganda; 3Department of Pathology, School of Biomedical Sciences, College of Health Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda; 4Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, College of Health Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda; 5Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Gulu University, Gulu, UgandaCorrespondence: Richard Wismayer, Department of Surgery, Masaka Regional Referral Hospital, Masaka, Uganda, Email [email protected]: The incidence of colorectal cancer (CRC) is increasing in East Africa. Changes in lifestyle and dietary changes, particularly alcohol consumption, smoking, and consumption of cooked meats with a reduction in fibre in the diet may be responsible. The objective of our study was to determine the risk factors responsible for CRC in Uganda.Methods: We recruited 129 participants with histologically proven colorectal adenocarcinoma and 258 control participants from four specialized hospitals in central Uganda from 2019 to 2021. Controls were block matched for age (± 5 years) and sex of the case participants. The risk factor variables included; area of residence, tribe, body mass index (BMI), smoking, alcohol consumption and family history of gastrointestinal cancer. We used conditional or ordinal logistic regression to obtain crude and adjusted odds ratios for risk factors associated with CRC.Results: In bivariate analysis, case participants were more likely to be associated with urban residence (cOR:62.11; p< 0.001); family history of GI cancer (cOR: 14.34; p=0.001); past smokers (cOR: 2.10; p=0.080); past alcohol drinkers (cOR: 2.35; p=0.012); current alcohol drinkers (cOR: 3.55; p< 0.001); high BMI 25– 29.9 kg/m2 (cOR: 2.49; p< 0.001); and high BMI ≥ 30kg/m2 (cOR: 2.37; p=0.012). In the multivariate analysis, urban residence (aOR: 82.79; p< 0.001), family history of GI cancer (aOR: 61.09; p< 0.001) and past smoking (aOR: 4.73; p=0.036) were independently associated with a higher risk of developing CRC.Conclusion: A family history of gastrointestinal cancer was a risk factor for CRC. While population-based CRC screening may not be feasible in low income-countries, targeted CRC screening for first-degree relatives with CRC should be considered in East Africa. Molecular genetic studies need to be carried out to determine the role of hereditary factors in our population. Prevention strategies should be adopted to avoid smoking in our population which was associated with an increased risk of CRC.Keywords: colorectal cancer, East Africa, risk factors, urban, family history, CRC screening
