Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of study participants by incident overall cancer
| Overall (N=420,964) | No cancer (N=385,985) | Incident cancer (N=34,979) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| CRP at baseline,(mg/L) | 2.4 ± 3.3 | 2.4 ± 3.3 | 2.7 ± 3.6 |
| Age at baseline,(years) | 56.2 ± 8.1 | 55.9 ± 8.1 | 60.2 ± 6.8 |
| Male,n(%) | 197,223 (46.9) | 178,749 (46.3) | 18,474 (52.8) |
| Ethnic,n(%) | |||
| White | 395,650 (94.0) | 361,760 (93.7) | 33,890 (96.9) |
| Asian | 9994 (2.4) | 9632 (2.5) | 362 (1.0) |
| African | 6829 (1.6) | 6557 (1.7) | 272 (0.8) |
| Mixed background | 2551 (0.6) | 2427 (0.6) | 124 (0.4) |
| Unknown | 5940 (1.4) | 5609 (1.5) | 331 (0.9) |
| Education,n(%) | |||
| No degree | 278,328 (66.1) | 254,225 (65.9) | 24,103 (68.9) |
| Degree | 137,610 (32.7) | 127,166 (33.0) | 10,444 (29.9) |
| Unknown | 5026 (1.2) | 4594 (1.1) | 432 (1.2) |
| Townsend deprivation index | −1.3 ± 3.1 | −1.3 ± 3.1 | −1.5 ± 3.0 |
| Standing height, (cm) | 168.6 ± 9.3 | 168.6 ± 9.3 | 169.3 ± 9.1 |
| BMI, (kg/m2) | 27.4 ± 4.8 | 27.4 ± 4.8 | 27.6 ± 4.7 |
| Smoking status,n(%) | |||
| Never | 230,940 (54.9) | 213,858 (55.4) | 17,082 (48.8) |
| Previous | 143,521 (34.1) | 129,772 (33.6) | 13,749 (39.3) |
| Current | 44,385 (10.5) | 40,431 (10.5) | 3954 (11.3) |
| Unknown | 2118 (0.5) | 1924 (0.5) | 194 (0.6) |
| Alcohol use,n(%) | |||
| Never | 18,583 (4.4) | 17,311 (4.5) | 1272 (3.6) |
| Previous | 14,892 (3.5) | 13,547 (3.5) | 1345 (3.9) |
| Current | 386,411 (91.8) | 354,112 (91.7) | 32,299 (92.3) |
| Unknown | 1078 (0.3) | 1015 (0.3) | 63 (0.2) |
| Physical activity (MET/week),n(%) | |||
| <600 | 63,447 (15.0) | 58,199 (15.1) | 5248 (15.0) |
| 600–3000 | 252,403 (60.0) | 231,494 (60.0) | 20,909 (59.8) |
| ≥3000 | 105,114 (25.0) | 96,292 (24.9) | 8822 (25.2) |
| Having family cancer history,n(%) | 145,198 (34.5) | 131,509 (34.1) | 13,689 (39.1) |
| Menopausal,n(%)a | |||
| No | 55,655 (24.9) | 53,240 (25.7) | 2,415 (14.6) |
| Yes | 133,190 (59.5) | 121,674 (58.7) | 11,516 (69.8) |
| Not sure | 34,209 (15.3) | 31,665 (15.3) | 2544 (15.4) |
| Unknown | 687 (0.3) | 657 (0.3) | 30 (0.2) |
| Oral contraceptive use,n(%)a | |||
| Never | 41,599 (18.6) | 38,025 (18.4) | 3574 (21.7) |
| Ever | 181,103 (80.9) | 168,223 (81.2) | 12,880 (78.0) |
| Unknown | 1039 (0.5) | 988 (0.5) | 51 (0.3) |
| Hormone replacement therapy,n(%)a | |||
| Never | 138,909 (62.1) | 130,148 (62.8) | 8761 (53.1) |
| Ever | 83,657 (37.4) | 75,983 (36.7) | 7674 (46.5) |
| Unknown | 1175 (0.5) | 1105 (0.5) | 70 (0.4) |
| Assessment center,n(%) | |||
| East Midlands | 28,471 (6.8) | 26,106 (6.8) | 2365 (6.8) |
| London | 58,162 (13.8) | 54,306 (14.1) | 3856 (11.0) |
| North Eastern England | 49,043 (11.7) | 44,883 (11.6) | 4160 (11.9) |
| North West England | 88,420 (21.0) | 80,906 (21.0) | 7514 (21.5) |
| Scotland | 55,745 (13.2) | 50,767 (13.2) | 4978 (14.2) |
| South East England | 12,216 (2.9) | 10,874 (2.8) | 1342 (3.8) |
| South west England | 36,372 (8.6) | 33,252 (8.6) | 3120 (8.9) |
| Wales | 17,998 (4.3) | 16,483 (4.3) | 1515 (4.3) |
| West Midlands England | 37,451 (8.9) | 34,445 (8.9) | 3006 (8.6) |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 37,086 (8.8) | 33,963 (8.8) | 3123 (8.9) |
aAnalysis was only conducted among women
Data are presented as mean ± standard deviation for continuous variables and n (%) for categorical variables