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. 2023 Mar 9;13(4):e063614. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2022-063614

Table 1.

Key input parameters and data sources in the Dietary Cancer Outcome Model (DiCOM)

Model input Outcome Estimates Distribution Comments Data source
1. Simulated population Population Mean consumption of calories was 332 kcal/day from full-service or fast-food restaurants (online supplemental tables 1, 8 and 9) Gamma Stratified by age, sex, race/ethnicity; 32 subgroups NHANES 2013–2016
2. Policy effect*
a. Consumer behaviour Policy effect 7.3% (95% CI 4.4% to 10.1%) (online supplemental appendix 1 and appendix table 1) Beta One-time effect Meta-analysis of labelling interventions on reducing calorie intake, Shangguan et al, 2019 15
b. Industry response Policy effect 5% (online supplemental appendix 1 and appendix table 2) Beta Assumption: no reformulation in the first year of policy intervention; restaurants will replace the high-calorie menu items with low-calorie options or reformulate the menu items in years 2 to 5 of the intervention to achieve a 5% reduction in calorie content Calorie changes in large chain restaurants from 2008 to 201518; higher-calorie menu items eliminated in large-chain restaurants19
3. Effect of change in calorie intake on BMI change (kg/m2)* Dietary effect Among individuals with:
BMI <25: 0.0015 per kcal
BMI ≥25: 0.003 per kcal
Normal Assumption: 55 kcal per day reduction in calorie intake would lead to one pound weight loss within 1 year, with no further weight loss in the future Hall et al, 201830; Hall et al, 201129
4. Etiologic effect of BMI on cancer outcomes* Cancer outcome RRs ranged from 1.05 to 1.50 (online supplemental table 2) Log normal BMI change and cancer incidence Continuous update project (CUP) conducted by the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF)/American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR)
5. Cancer statistics* Cancer incidence‡ and survival online supplemental tables 3 and 4 and appendices 2 and 3, appendix tables 3 and 4 Beta Stratified by age, sex and race/ethnicity NCI’s Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Programme (SEER) Database; CDC’s National Programme of Cancer Registries (NPCR) Database
6. Healthcare-related costs*† Medical expenditures, productivity loss and patient time costs online supplemental tables 6 and 7, appendix 6 and appendix table 7 Gamma Stratified by age and sex NCI’s cancer prevalence and cost of care projections; published literature
7. Policy costs*† For government and industry online supplemental appendix 5 and appendix tables 5 and 6 Gamma Administration and monitoring costs for government; compliance and reformulation costs for industry FDA’s budget report; Nutrition Review Project; and FDA’s Regulatory Impact Analysis
8. Health-related quality of life (HRQoL)* For 13 types of cancer Ranged from 0.64 to 0.86 (online supplemental table 5 and appendix 4) Beta EQ-5D§ data from published literature by cancer type Published literature

*Uncertainty distributions were incorporated in the probabilistic sensitivity analyses. Uncertainties in each parameter are presented in supplemental materials (online supplemental appendix table 5 and online supplemental tables 2–9).

†If the source did not provide uncertainty estimates, we assumed the standard errors were 20% of the mean estimate to generate gamma distribution.

‡Time-varying input parameter, for which the model accounted for the secular trends. Details are provided in the Supplements.

§EQ-5D is a standardised instrument developed by the EuroQol Group as a measure of health-related quality of life that can be used in a wide range of health conditions and treatments.

BMI, body mass index; CDC, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; FDA, Food and Drug Administration; NCI, National Cancer Institute; NHANES, National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.