Obesity is associated with increased risks of several
cancers including colon and female breast.
Pesticide use in agricultural populations has also been linked with higher risks of various
cancers. However, the interaction between
obesity and
pesticide use on
cancer risk has not been well studied. Using data from the Agricultural Health Study, we examined the association between body mass index (BMI) and the risk of
cancer at 17 sites and the interaction between BMI and
pesticide use.
Pesticide applicators residing in Iowa and North Carolina and their spouses were enrolled between 1993 and 1997 and given a self-administered questionnaire to obtain
pesticide use and other information. This analysis included 39,628 men and 28,319 women with height and weight data who were
cancer-free at enrollment. Among these participants, 4,432 were diagnosed with
cancer between enrollment and 2005 and 64% were
overweight or obese. BMI (per 1 kg/m(2)) was positively associated with
colon cancer in men (hazard ratio (HR) 1.05, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.02-1.09) and
breast cancer in postmenopausal women (HR 1.03, 95% CI 1.01-1.06). In contrast, BMI was inversely associated with
lung cancer in men, with a significant association in ever smokers (HR 0.92, 95% CI 0.88-0.97) and a null association in never smokers. The positive association between BMI and
colon cancer in men was significant in those who ever used
carbofuran (HR = 1.10, 95% CI 1.04-1.17; p-interaction = 0.04) or
metolachlor (HR = 1.09, 95% CI 1.04-1.15; p-interaction = 0.02) but was null in non-users of these pesticides. Among male ever smokers, the inverse association between BMI and
lung cancer was significant in non-users of
carbofuran (HR = 0.87, 95% CI = 0.82-0.92) but was null in users of
carbofuran (p-interaction = 0.02). These findings suggest that certain pesticides may modify the effects of BMI on the risks of colon and
lung cancers.