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社会と健康研究センター

Home > Divisions & Departments > Epidemiology and Prevention Group > Division of Epidemiology

Division of Epidemiology

Staff

Chief

Motoki Iwasaki

Section Head

Taiki Yamaji, Ryoko Katagiri

Staff Scientist

 

Researcher

Kayo Ohashi, Yoko Shimizu, Rieko Kanehara, Shiori Suzuki, CHEI Choy Lye, Miyuki Hori, Akiko Hanyuda, Maki Igarashi

Research assistant

Aya Morishita, Xiaoqing Pan, Ayako Toyama

Introduction

Research is conducted aimed at constructing evidence connected to the development of cancer prevention by clarifying the causes of cancer in humans by using a study base of large-scale cohort study and others of local residents.

Research activities

Japan Public Health Center-based prospective study (JPHC study)/JPHC study for the NEXT generation (JPHC-NEXT)

Follow-up surveys and data analysis of the Japan Public Health Center-based prospective study (JPHC study) with 140,000 local residents as subjects have been conducted continuously since 1990.

We investigated gene-environment interaction based on nested case-control studies within the JPHC study. In this study, we hypothesized that genetic polymorphisms related to alcohol and acetaldehyde dehydrogenase may modify association between alcohol consumption and the risk of gastric cancer. Alcohol consumption was significantly associated with an increased risk of gastric cancer among subjects with G allele of ADH1C gene, whose enzyme activity is lower than those with A allele or subjects with A allele of ALDH2 gene whose enzyme activity is lower than those with G allele only.

The JPHC study participates in several international consortium studies and one of them investigated the association between alcohol consumption and the risk of breast cancer subtypes defined by an estrogen receptor based on 20 cohort studies including about one million women. It reported a significant positive association between alcohol consumption and the risk of breast cancer regardless of subtypes by estrogen receptor.

Structuring of the cohort for the JPHC study for the NEXT generation (JPHC-NEXT) is proceeding according to schedule with the recruitment of participants currently under way by obtaining questionnaire information from 95,671 participants, and by obtaining biological samples and information from 48,431 participants (see Table 1 below).

Molecular epidemiologic studies to investigate the cause of cancer through means such as omics data analysis

In order to develop a risk prediction model for cancer among Japanese using information on genetic factors and plasma biomarkers in addition to lifestyle factors, we conducted a case-cohort study of total cancer within the baseline survey of the JPHC study and have performed data analysis for identifying risk factors that contribute to personalized prevention.

Education

Supervised the research of three research resident fellowships and one senior resident in the hospital. Supervised the education of one medical student short-term trainee.

Future prospects

While focusing on the cohort structure of the JPHC study for the next generation (JPHC-NEXT) that becomes the study base, we hope to contribute to the development of cancer prevention through the analysis of information and samples of existing epidemiologic studies by identifying new risk factors and the continued evaluation of risks in Japanese people.

Table 1. Progress of the JPHC for the NEXT generation (JPHC-NEXT)

List of papers published in 2015

Journal

  1. Wang H, Iwasaki M, Haiman CA, Kono S, Wilkens LR, Keku TO, Berndt SI, Tsugane S, Le Marchand L. Interaction between Red Meat Intake and NAT2 Genotype in Increasing the Risk of Colorectal Cancer in Japanese and African Americans. PLoS One, 10:e0144955, 2015 [PubMed]
  2. Kikuchi H, Inoue S, Odagiri Y, Inoue M, Sawada N, Tsugane S, Japan Public Health Centre (JPHC) study group. Occupational sitting time and risk of all-cause mortality among Japanese workers. Scand J Work Environ Health, 41:519-528, 2015 [PubMed]
  3. Hidaka A, Shimazu T, Sawada N, Yamaji T, Iwasaki M, Sasazuki S, Inoue M, Tsugane S, Japan Public Health Center–based Prospective Study Group. Fish, n-3 PUFA consumption, and pancreatic cancer risk in Japanese: a large, population-based, prospective cohort study. Am J Clin Nutr, 12:1490-1497, 2015 [PubMed]
  4. Schumacher FR, Schmit SL, Jiao S, Edlund CK, Wang H, Zhang B, Hsu L, Huang SC, Fischer CP, Harju JF, Idos GE, Lejbkowicz F, Manion FJ, McDonnell K, McNeil CE, Melas M, Rennert HS, Shi W, Thomas DC, Van Den Berg DJ, Hutter CM, Aragaki AK, Butterbach K, Caan BJ, Carlson CS, Chanock SJ, Curtis KR, Fuchs CS, Gala M, Giovannucci EL, Gogarten SM, Hayes RB, Henderson B, Hunter DJ, Jackson RD, Kolonel LN, Kooperberg C, Küry S, LaCroix A, Laurie CC, Laurie CA, Lemire M, Levine D, Ma J, Makar KW, Qu C, Taverna D, Ulrich CM, Wu K, Kono S, West DW, Berndt SI, Bezieau S, Brenner H, Campbell PT, Chan AT, Chang-Claude J, Coetzee GA, Conti DV, Duggan D, Figueiredo JC, Fortini BK, Gallinger SJ, Gauderman WJ, Giles G, Green R, Haile R, Harrison TA, Hoffmeister M, Hopper JL, Hudson TJ, Jacobs E, Iwasaki M, Jee SH, Jenkins M, Jia WH, Joshi A, Li L, Lindor NM, Matsuo K, Moreno V, Mukherjee B, Newcomb PA, Potter JD, Raskin L, Rennert G, Rosse S, Severi G, Schoen RE, Seminara D, Shu XO, Slattery ML, Tsugane S, White E, Xiang YB, Zanke BW, Zheng W, Le Marchand L, Casey G, Gruber SB, Peters U. Corrigendum: genome-wide association study of colorectal cancer identifies six new susceptibility loci. Nat Commun, 6:8739, 2015 [PubMed]
  5. Kawabata-Shoda E, Charvat H, Ikeda A, Inoue M, Sawada N, Iwasaki M, Sasazuki S, Shimazu T, Yamaji T, Kimura H, Masuda S, Tsugane S. Trends in cancer prognosis in a population-based cohort survey: can recent advances in cancer therapy affect the prognosis? Cancer Epidemiol, 39:97-103, 2015 [PubMed]
  6. Fowke JH, McLerran DF, Gupta PC, He J, Shu XO, Ramadas K, Tsugane S, Inoue M, Tamakoshi A, Koh WP, Nishino Y, Tsuji I, Ozasa K, Yuan JM, Tanaka H, Ahn YO, Chen CJ, Sugawara Y, Yoo KY, Ahsan H, Pan WH, Pednekar M, Gu D, Xiang YB, Sauvaget C, Sawada N, Wang R, Kakizaki M, Tomata Y, Ohishi W, Butler LM, Oze I, Kim DH, You SL, Park SK, Parvez F, Chuang SY, Chen Y, Lee JE, Grant E, Rolland B, Thornquist M, Feng Z, Zheng W, Boffetta P, Sinha R, Kang D, Potter JD. Associations of body mass index, smoking, and alcohol consumption with prostate cancer mortality in the Asia Cohort Consortium. Am J Epidemiol, 182:381-389, 2015 [PubMed]
  7. Ueno M, Ohara S, Sawada N, Inoue M, Tsugane S, Kawaguchi Y. The association of active and secondhand smoking with oral health in adults: Japan public health center-based study. Tob Induc Dis, 13:19, 2015 [PubMed]
  8. Schumacher FR, Schmit SL, Jiao S, Edlund CK, Wang H, Zhang B, Hsu L, Huang SC, Fischer CP, Harju JF, Idos GE, Lejbkowicz F, Manion FJ, McDonnell K, McNeil CE, Melas M, Rennert HS, Shi W, Thomas DC, Van Den Berg DJ, Hutter CM, Aragaki AK, Butterbach K, Caan BJ, Carlson CS, Chanock SJ, Curtis KR, Fuchs CS, Gala M, Giovannucc EL, Giocannucci EL, Gogarten SM, Hayes RB, Henderson B, Hunter DJ, Jackson RD, Kolonel LN, Kooperberg C, Küry S, Kury S, LaCroix A, Laurie CC, Laurie CA, Lemire M, Lemire M, Levine D, Ma J, Makar KW, Qu C, Taverna D, Ulrich CM, Wu K, Kono S, West DW, Berndt SI, Bezieau S, Brenner H, Campbell PT, Chan AT, Chang-Claude J, Coetzee GA, Conti DV, Duggan D, Figueiredo JC, Fortini BK, Gallinger SJ, Gauderman WJ, Giles G, Green R, Haile R, Harrison TA, Hoffmeister M, Hopper JL, Hudson TJ, Jacobs E, Iwasaki M, Jee SH, Jenkins M, Jia WH, Joshi A, Li L, Lindor NM, Matsuo K, Moreno V, Mukherjee B, Newcomb PA, Potter JD, Raskin L, Rennert G, Rosse S, Severi G, Schoen RE, Seminara D, Shu XO, Slattery ML, Tsugane S, White E, Xiang YB, Zanke BW, Zheng W, Le Marchand L, Casey G, Gruber SB, Peters U. Genome-wide association study of colorectal cancer identifies six new susceptibility loci. Nat Commun, 6:7138, 2015 [PubMed]
  9. Abe SK, Inoue M, Sawada N, Iwasaki M, Shimazu T, Yamaji T, Sasazuki S, Tanaka Y, Mizokami M, Tsugane S, JPHC Study Group. Hepatitis B and C virus infection and risk of lymphoid malignancies: A population-based cohort study (JPHC Study). Cancer Epidemiol, 39:562-566, 2015 [PubMed]
  10. Kiyabu GY, Inoue M, Saito E, Abe SK, Sawada N, Ishihara J, Iwasaki M, Yamaji T, Shimazu T, Sasazuki S, Shibuya K, Tsugane S, JPHC Study Group. Fish, n - 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and n - 6 polyunsaturated fatty acids intake and breast cancer risk: The Japan Public Health Center-based prospective study. Int J Cancer, 137:2915-2926, 2015 [PubMed]
  11. Kato M, Noda M, Mizoue T, Goto A, Takahashi Y, Matsushita Y, Nanri A, Iso H, Inoue M, Sawada N, Tsugane S, JPHC Study Group. Diagnosed diabetes and premature death among middle-aged Japanese: results from a large-scale population-based cohort study in Japan (JPHC study). BMJ Open, 5:e007736, 2015 [PubMed]
  12. Goto A, Noda M, Matsushita Y, Goto M, Kato M, Isogawa A, Takahashi Y, Kurotani K, Oba S, Nanri A, Mizoue T, Yamagishi K, Yatsuya H, Saito I, Kokubo Y, Sawada N, Inoue M, Iso H, Kadowaki T, Tsugane S, JPHC Study Group. Hemoglobin a1c levels and the risk of cardiovascular disease in people without known diabetes: a population-based cohort study in Japan. Medicine (Baltimore), 94:e785, 2015 [PubMed]
  13. Saito E, Inoue M, Sawada N, Shimazu T, Yamaji T, Iwasaki M, Sasazuki S, Noda M, Iso H, Tsugane S, JPHC Study Group. Association of green tea consumption with mortality due to all causes and major causes of death in a Japanese population: the Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Study (JPHC Study). Ann Epidemiol, 25:512-518.e3, 2015 [PubMed]
  14. Ma E, Sasazuki S, Shimazu T, Sawada N, Yamaji T, Iwasaki M, Inoue M, Tsugane S. Reactive oxygen species and gastric cancer risk: a large nested case-control study in Japan. Eur J Epidemiol, 30:589-594, 2015 [PubMed]
  15. Saito E, Inoue M, Sawada N, Shimazu T, Yamaji T, Iwasaki M, Sasazuki S, Noda M, Iso H, Tsugane S. Association of coffee intake with total and cause-specific mortality in a Japanese population: the Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Study. Am J Clin Nutr, 11:1029-1037, 2015 [PubMed]
  16. Shimizu K, Nakaya N, Saito-Nakaya K, Akechi T, Ogawa A, Fujisawa D, Sone T, Yoshiuchi K, Goto K, Iwasaki M, Tsugane S, Uchitomi Y. Personality traits and coping styles explain anxiety in lung cancer patients to a greater extent than other factors. Jpn J Clin Oncol, 45:456-463, 2015 [PubMed]
  17. Honjo K, Iso H, Nakaya T, Hanibuchi T, Ikeda A, Inoue M, Sawada N, Tsugane S, Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Study Group. Impact of neighborhood socioeconomic conditions on the risk of stroke in Japan. J Epidemiol, 25:254-260, 2015 [PubMed]
  18. Nanri A, Mizoue T, Kurotani K, Goto A, Oba S, Noda M, Sawada N, Tsugane S, Japan Public Health Center-Based Prospective Study Group. Low-carbohydrate diet and type 2 diabetes risk in Japanese men and women: the Japan Public Health Center-Based Prospective Study. PLoS One, 10:e0118377, 2015 [PubMed]
  19. Iwasaki M, Franke AA, Hamada GS, Miyajima NT, Sharma S, Ishihara J, Takachi R, Tsugane S, Le Marchand L. Comparison of plasma levels of nutrient-related biomarkers among Japanese populations in Tokyo, Japan, São Paulo, Brazil, and Hawaii, USA. Eur J Cancer Prev, 24:155-161, 2015 [PubMed]
  20. Budhathoki S, Iwasaki M, Yamaji T, Sasazuki S, Takachi R, Sakamoto H, Yoshida T, Tsugane S. Dietary heterocyclic amine intake, NAT2 genetic polymorphism, and colorectal adenoma risk: the colorectal adenoma study in Tokyo. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev, 24:613-620, 2015 [PubMed]
  21. Michikawa T, Inoue M, Sawada N, Tanaka Y, Yamaji T, Iwasaki M, Shimazu T, Sasazuki S, Mizokami M, Tsugane S, , for the Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Study Group. Plasma isoflavones and risk of primary liver cancer in Japanese women and men with hepatitis virus infection: a nested case-control study. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev, 24:532-537, 2015 [PubMed]
  22. Sawada N, Iwasaki M, Yamaji T, Shimazu T, Sasazuki S, Inoue M, Tsugane S, Japan Public Health Center–based Prospective Study Group. Fiber intake and risk of subsequent prostate cancer in Japanese men. Am J Clin Nutr, 11:118-125, 2015 [PubMed]
  23. Hidaka A, Sasazuki S, Matsuo K, Ito H, Sawada N, Shimazu T, Yamaji T, Iwasaki M, Inoue M, Tsugane S, JPHC Study Group. Genetic polymorphisms of ADH1B, ADH1C and ALDH2, alcohol consumption, and the risk of gastric cancer: the Japan Public Health Center-based prospective study. Carcinogenesis, 36:223-231, 2015 [PubMed]
  24. Svensson T, Inoue M, Sawada N, Iwasaki M, Sasazuki S, Shimazu T, Yamaji T, Ikeda A, Kawamura N, Mimura M, Tsugane S, Japan Public Health Centre-based prospective Study Group. The association between complete and partial non-response to psychosocial questions and suicide: the JPHC Study. Eur J Public Health, 25:424-430, 2015 [PubMed]
  25. Budhathoki S, Iwasaki M, Yamaji T, Sasazuki S, Tsugane S. Coffee intake and the risk of colorectal adenoma: The colorectal adenoma study in Tokyo. Int J Cancer, 137:463-470, 2015 [PubMed]
  26. Hanibuchi T, Nakaya T, Honjo K, Ikeda A, Iso H, Inoue M, Sawada N, Tsugane S, Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Study Group. Neighborhood contextual factors for smoking among middle-aged Japanese: a multilevel analysis. Health Place, 31:17-23, 2015 [PubMed]
  27. Budhathoki S, Iwasaki M, Sawada N, Yamaji T, Shimazu T, Sasazuki S, Inoue M, Tsugane S, JPHC Study Group. Soy food and isoflavone intake and endometrial cancer risk: the Japan Public Health Center-based prospective study. BJOG, 122:304-311, 2015 [PubMed]
  28. Hidaka A, Sasazuki S, Goto A, Sawada N, Shimazu T, Yamaji T, Iwasaki M, Inoue M, Noda M, Tajiri H, Tsugane S, JPHC Study Group. Plasma insulin, C-peptide and blood glucose and the risk of gastric cancer: the Japan Public Health Center-based prospective study. Int J Cancer, 136:1402-1410, 2015 [PubMed]