This study indicates that higher serum carotenoid levels might be inversely associated with non-Hodgkin lymphoma risk. - GreenMedInfo Summary
Associations between serum carotenoid levels and the risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma: a case-control study.
Br J Nutr. 2020 Apr 30:1-31. Epub 2020 Apr 30. PMID: 32349798
Shan Li
Limited studies have investigated the effects of serum carotenoids on the risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) and the findings have been inconclusive. This study aims to assess the association between serum total or specific carotenoid levels and NHL risk. This 1:1 matched, hospital-based case-control study enrolled 512 newly diagnosed (within 1 month) NHL patients and 512 healthy controls who were matched by age (±5 years) and sex in Urumqi, China. Serum carotenoid levels were measured by high-pressure liquid chromatography. Conditional logistic regression showed that higher serum total carotenoid levels and their subtypes (e.g., α-carotene, β-carotene, β-cryptoxanthin, and lycopene) were dose-dependently associated with decreased NHL risk. The multivariable-adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for NHL risk for quartile 4 (vs. quartile 1) were 0.31 (0.22, 0.48; P for trend:<0.001) for total carotenoids, 0.52 (0.33, 0.79; P for trend: 0.003) forα-carotene, 0.63 (0.42, 0.94; P for trend: 0.031) for β-carotene, 0.73 (0.49, 1.05; P for trend: 0.034) for β-cryptoxanthin, and 0.51 (0.34, 0.75; P for trend: 0.001) for lycopene. A null association was observed between serum lutein+zeaxanthin and NHL risk (OR: 0.89, 95% CI: 0.57, 1.38; P for trend: 0.556). Significant interactions were observed after stratifying according to smoking status, and inverse associations were more evident among current smokers than past or never smokers for total carotenoids, α-carotene, and lycopene (P for heterogeneity: 0.047, 0.042, and 0.046). This study indicates that higher serum carotenoid levels might be inversely associated with NHL risk, especially among current smokers.