Environmental and Genetic Determinants of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma (NPC)

September 16, 2011 updated by: Li-Jen Liao, Far Eastern Memorial Hospital

Far Eastern Memorial Hospital

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is one of the most common malignant tumors in southern China and Southeast Asia. While infection with Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) is believed to be necessary for the development of NPC, non-viral environmental factors have also been implicated to increase the risk of NPC including consumption of salted fish and other nitrosamine containing preserved foods, formaldehyde and wood dust exposure, and cigarette smoking. In addition to environmental factors, it is widely accepted that genetic susceptibility also plays an important role in the pathogenesis of NPC. Polymorphisms in genes involved in nitrosamine metabolism and DNA repair have been suggested to be associated with NPC risk, and various chromosomal regions linked to NPC development have been reported. These associations highlight the role of both environmental and genomic components in the etiology of NPC.

There is a longstanding history of international collaborative studies to elucidate the role of environmental and genetic factors associated with NPC between investigators in Taiwan and the USA. A case-control study (375 cases; 327 controls) was conducted in the early 1990s, and a large multiplex family study that was completed in 2006 (358 families; 3,216 individuals). Results from these studies have provided some of the most comprehensive epidemiological evidence regarding factors linked to NPC development to date.

As a next logical step, the opportunity now exists to undertake a genome-wide association study of NPC in Taiwan with carefully collected environmental exposure data to systematically examine environmental and genetic factors associated with NPC, and to evaluate gene-gene and gene-environment interactions. The investigators propose a case-control study of 2000 NPC cases (both retrospective [n=800] and prospective [n=1,200]) and 2,000 age-gender-matched hospital controls in northern Taiwan. The study objectives are to: 1) evaluate putative environmental exposures and NPC; 2) assess the effect of genetic factors, including both single nucleotide polymorphism and copy number variation through analysis of both main effect and gene-gene interaction; 3) investigate gene-environment interactions by testing for interactions between significant genome-wide genetic variations and EBV and other identified environmental risk factors; and 4) examine the natural history of EBV infection.

Study Overview

Status

Unknown

Conditions

Study Type

Observational

Enrollment (Anticipated)

4000

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

  • Taiwan
      • Taipei, Taiwan
        • Recruiting
        • Far Eastern Memorial Hospital
        • Contact:

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 and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Sampling Method

Probability Sample

Study Population

We propose a case-control study of 2000 NPC cases (both retrospective [n=800] and prospective [n=1,200]) and 2,000 age-gender-matched hospital controls in northern Taiwan

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Patients diagnosed with NPC

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Case group and control group younger than 18 age. Control group, the reasons for hospitalization for the EB virus-related disease

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

  • Observational Models: Case-Control
  • Time Perspectives: Cross-Sectional

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Far Eastern Memorial Hospital

Collaborators

National Taiwan University Hospital

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

August 1, 2010

Primary Completion (Anticipated)

December 1, 2014

Study Completion (Anticipated)

December 1, 2014

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

August 15, 2010

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 16, 2010

First Posted (Estimate)

August 17, 2010

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

September 19, 2011

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 16, 2011

Last Verified

September 1, 2011

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 099046-F

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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