Table 2. Sociodemographic Characteristics and AT POP Exposure Levels in the Study Population (n = 348)a.
| total
study participants (n = 348)b |
participants free of cancer (n = 304) |
participants with any type of malignancy (n = 44) |
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| n | % | n | % | n | % | P-valuec | |
| Sex = male | 175 | 50.3 | 173 | 50.0 | 23 | 52.3 | 0.872 |
| education | 0.301 | ||||||
| primary uncompleted | 95 | 27.3 | 80 | 26.3 | 15 | 34.1 | |
| primary | 155 | 44.5 | 140 | 46.1 | 15 | 34.1 | |
| secondary or higher | 98 | 28.2 | 84 | 27.6 | 14 | 31.8 | |
| residence | 0.519 | ||||||
| urban | 179 | 51.4 | 154 | 50.7 | 25 | 56.8 | |
| semi-rural | 169 | 48.6 | 150 | 49.3 | 19 | 43.2 | |
| alcohol consumer (=yes) | 181 | 52.0 | 155 | 51.0 | 26 | 59.1 | 0.337 |
| smoker (=yes) | 113 | 32.5 | 100 | 32.9 | 13 | 29.5 | 0.732 |
| DF (%) | median (P25, P75) | median (P25, P75) | median (P25, P75) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| age (years) | 50.5 (36.0, 63.0) | 48.0 (34.0, 61.0) | 60.0 (52.5, 72.0) | <0.001 | |
| BMI (kg/m2) | 26.5 (23.8, 29.4) | 26.3 (23.6, 29.4) | 27.5 (24.5, 30.1) | 0.052 | |
| PCB-138 (ng/g) | 86 | 82.4 (30.6, 138.4) | 70.2 (24.9, 126.7) | 110.9 (86.6, 208.0) | <0.001 |
| PCB-153 (ng/g) | 92 | 218.2 (136.4, 361.9) | 204.3 (119.1, 332.2) | 310.4 (233.8, 513.1) | <0.001 |
| PCB-180 (ng/g) | 90 | 178.5 (102.8, 296.2) | 171.2 (97.0, 278.3) | 260.9 (183.7, 372.7) | <0.001 |
| p,p′-DDE (ng/g) | 100 | 94.7 (32.9, 210.4) | 78.1 (30.7, 190.0) | 175.7 (107.4, 312.6) | <0.001 |
| HCB (ng/g) | 91 | 14.6 (5.0, 39.6) | 12.6 (4.8, 35.9) | 32.7 (13.8, 72.1) | <0.001 |
| β-HCH (ng/g) | 84 | 10.5 (3.7, 21.2) | 9.4 (2.8, 19.3) | 19.2 (11.3, 28.0) | <0.001 |
| n | % | n | % | n | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| dicofol (>LOD) | 71 | 20.4 | 63 | 20.7 | 8 | 18.2 | 0.842 |
| α-HCH (>LOD) | 70 | 20.1 | 55 | 18.1 | 15 | 34.1 | 0.025 |
Data are presented as frequencies and percentages for categorical variables or as median (percentile 25, percentile 75) for continuous variables. BMI (body mass index); PCB 138, 153, and 180 (polychlorinated biphenyls 138, 153, and 180); p,p′-DDE (p,p′-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene); β-HCH (β-hexachlorocyclohexane); HCB (hexachlorobenzene); α-HCH (α-hexachlorocyclohexane); DF (detection frequency).
A total of 348 participants with available persistent organic pollutant (POP) concentrations in AT after excluding benign tumors and basal cell carcinomas (BCCs). During the 16-year follow-up period, 304 participants remained free of cancer, and 44 developed any type of malignancy.
P-value for the comparison between cancer and non-cancer cases. Fisher’s exact test and Mann–Whitney’s U for categorical and continuous variables, respectively.