Sun Exposure and Melanoma in Agricultural Workers

October 27, 2020 updated by: National Cancer Institute (NCI)

This K07 Career Development Award application is designed to expand Dr. Dennis career development from cancer etiology to cancer prevention and control. The career development plan rests on mentoring directed by experts in cancer prevention research and protected time to foster my professional development as an independent cancer control researcher. A unique population, the Agricultural Health Study (AHS) cohort, will be used to examine sun exposure, sun protection behavior, and factors affecting these behaviors regarding the risk of melanoma in private pesticide applicators (farmers) and their spouses.

The research plan proposed to examine skin melanoma within this prospective cohort of private applicators (mostly farmers) and their spouses in Iowa and North Carolina (the AHS) in association with environmental factors. Specific aim 1 examined the risk of melanoma in the AHS cohort using various existing measures of sun exposure adjusted for skin sensitivity and sun protection. Subsequently (for aim 2) qualitative research methods were used to design appropriate measures of sun exposure, sun protection behavior, and factors affecting these behaviors in private applicators and their spouses within the AHS based on the cohort analyses.

Now Aim 3 will be completed by conducting a nested case-control study of melanoma within the AHS cohort to examine in more detail sun exposure histories and protective behavior. The questionnaire was designed based on findings from the cohort analyses (aim 1) and qualitative methods (aim 2). The risk of melanoma will be examined regarding: a) the complex relationship of cumulative (sun exposure during each decade of life) and intermittent sun exposure (sunburns and sunny vacations), b) factors affecting behavior including attitudes about sun exposure and prevention, and c) the use of tanning salons and sunless tanning creams, particularly in spouses (expected to be rare overall).

The final aim is to use the results from the cohort and nested case-control studies to design a behavioral intervention, along with short computer automated telephone interview (CATI) that can be used in the whole AHS cohort or other farming populations. Funding for such studies will be sought through the R01) mechanism as an independent cancer control researcher. The behavioral intervention will be based on those factors that are the strongest risk factors for melanoma, highly prevalent, and easily modifiable. The behavioral intervention will be designed based on knowledge and skill gained from the Career Development Plan goals.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Detailed Description

This K07 Career Development Award application is designed to expand Dr. Dennis career development from cancer etiology to cancer prevention and control. The career development plan rests on mentoring directed by experts in cancer prevention research and "protected time" to foster my professional development as an independent cancer control researcher. A unique population, the Agricultural Health Study (AHS) cohort, will be used to examine sun exposure, sun protection behavior, and factors affecting these behaviors regarding the risk of melanoma in private pesticide applicators (farmers) and their spouses. The research plan proposed to examine skin melanoma within this prospective cohort of private applicators (mostly farmers) and their spouses in Iowa and North Carolina (the AHS) in association with environmental factors. Specific aim 1 examined the risk of melanoma in the AHS cohort using various existing measures of sun exposure adjusted for skin sensitivity and sun protection. Subsequently (for aim 2), qualitative research methods were used to design appropriate measures of sun exposure, sun protection behavior, and factors affecting these behaviors in private applicators and their spouses within the AHS based on the cohort analyses. Now Aim 3 will be completed by conducting a nested case-control study of melanoma within the AHS cohort to examine in more detail sun exposure histories and protective behavior. The questionnaire was designed based on findings from the cohort analyses (aim 1) and qualitative methods (aim 2). The risk of melanoma will be examined regarding: a) the complex relationship of cumulative (sun exposure during each decade of life) and intermittent sun exposure (sunburns and sunny vacations), b) factors affecting behavior including attitudes about sun exposure and prevention, and c) the use of tanning salons and sunless tanning creams, particularly in spouses (expected to be rare overall). The final aim is to use the results from the cohort and nested case-control studies to design a behavioral intervention, along with a short computer automated telephone interview (CATI) that can be used in the whole AHS cohort or other farming populations. Funding for such studies will be sought through the R01 mechanism as an independent cancer control researcher. The behavioral intervention will be based on those factors that are the strongest risk factors for melanoma, highly prevalent, and easily modifiable. The behavioral intervention will be designed based on knowledge and skill gained from the Career Development Plan goals.

Study Type

Observational

Enrollment (Actual)

447

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Maryland
      • Bethesda, Maryland, United States, 20892
        • National Cancer Institute (NCI), 9000 Rockville Pike

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 100 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Members of the the AHS cohort -- registered private pesticide applicators (mostly farmers) and their spouses -- in Iowa.@@@@@@

Description

  • INCLUSION CRITERIA:
  • Registered Agricultural Health Study (AHS) participants in Iowa

EXCLUSION CRITERIA:

  • prior cancer diagnosis other than melanoma
  • surrogates will not be used if a case has died before they are interviewed
  • participants under 18 will not be included.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort
Agricultural workers and spouses
Melanoma risk factors among Ag workers and spouses who use pesticides.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Prevalence of melanoma
Time Frame: After enrollment
Diagnosis of melanoma after enrollment into Agricultural Health Study
After enrollment

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

May 12, 2009

Primary Completion (Actual)

October 31, 2010

Study Completion (Actual)

February 13, 2013

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

May 13, 2009

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 13, 2009

First Posted (Estimate)

May 14, 2009

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

October 28, 2020

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

October 27, 2020

Last Verified

October 1, 2020

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 999909143
  • 09-C-N143

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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