High Levels Of Education Linked To Heightened Brain Tumor Risk
Gliomas, in particular, more common among universityeducated,large observational study shows
A university degree is linked to a heightened risk of developing abrain tumour, suggests a large observational study, publishedonline in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health.Gliomas, in particular, were more common among people whohad studied at university for at least three years than they wereamong those who didn’t go on to higher education, the datashow.
The researchers base their findings on more than 4.3 millionSwedes, all of whom were born between 1911 and 1961 andliving in Sweden in 1991.
They were monitored between 1993 and 2010 to see if theydeveloped a primary brain tumour, and information oneducational attainment, disposable income, marital status, andoccupation was obtained from national insurance, labour market,and national census data.
During the monitoring period, 1.1 million people died and morethan 48,000 emigrated, but 5735 of the men and 7101 of thewomen developed a brain tumour.Men with university level education, lasting at least three years,were 19% more likely to develop a glioma—a type ofcancerous tumour arising in glial cells that surround andsupport neurons in the brain—than men whose educationalattainment didn’t extend beyond the period of compulsoryschooling (9 years).
Among women, the magnitude of risk was 23% higher forglioma, and 16% higher for meningioma—a type of mostly noncancerousbrain tumour arising in the layers of tissue (meninges)that surround and protect the brain and spinal cord—than it wasfor women who didn’t go on to higher education.
Taking account of potentially influential factors, such as maritalstatus and disposable income, only marginally affected the sizeof the risk, and only among the men.
High levels of disposable income were associated with a 14%heightened risk of glioma among men, but had no bearing on therisk of either meningioma or acoustic neuroma—a type of noncancerousbrain tumour that grows on the nerve used forhearing and balance.
Nor was disposable income associated with heightened risk ofany type of brain tumour among the women.
Occupation also seemed to influence risk for men and women.Compared with men in manual roles, professional andmanagerial roles (intermediate and high non-manual jobs) wereassociated with a 20% heightened risk of glioma and a 50%heightened risk of acoustic neuroma.
The risk of glioma was also 26% higher among women inprofessional and managerial roles than it was for women inmanual roles, while the risk of meningioma was 14% higher.
Single men also seemed to have a significantly lower risk ofglioma than married/co-habiting men, but, on the other hand,they had a higher risk of meningioma. No such associationswere evident among the women.This is an observational study so no firm conclusions can bedrawn about cause and effect, and the researchers point out thatthey were not able to glean information on potentially influentiallifestyle factors.
But they emphasise that their findings were consistent, and theypoint to the strengths of using population data.
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Notes for editors:
Research: Socioeconomic position and the risk of brain tumour:a Swedish national population-based cohort studyhttp://jech.bmj.com/lookup/doi/10.1136/jech-2015-207002
