Is Cadmium Exposure associated with Thyroid Cancer? A National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey Analysis
Year: 2022
Type: conference-abstract
Abstract: Introduction The increasing thyroid cancer incidence in the past few decades might be partially explained by the changing prevalence of environmental exposures, including to the heavy metal cadmium. Although cadmium is known to accumulate in the thyroid gland and has been labeled a carcinogen, an association between cadmium exposure and thyroid cancer has not been demonstrated to date. To assess this potential effect of cadmium exposure, this study investigated the association between blood cadmium levels and thyroglobulin antibodies (TgAb) as previous studies showed that positive TgAb predicts the presence of thyroid cancer in patients with thyroid nodules. Methods Using the 2007-2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), participants of 20 years and older without thyroid disease/ cancer with reported blood cadmium and thyroid function levels were included (n=7,383). TgAb and cadmium were log-adjusted. Models with cadmium as a log-adjusted continuous variable and divided into quartiles of exposure, adjusted for age groups, sex, race, BMI groups, alcohol, smoking, and iodine status were assessed using complex survey design. Results The geometric mean of cadmium across all participants was 0.348 ng/mL (standard error (SE): 0.005). After adjustment, there was no significant association between continuous cadmium levels and TgAb (β=0.057, 95% confidence interval (CI): -0.004; 0.119. Models with cadmium divided into quartiles showed that though quartile 2 and 3 were associated with increased TgAb, this association was only significant for quartile 4 (β=0.193, 95% CI: 0.069; 0.317), versus quartile 1. Discussion High levels of cadmium were positively associated with TgAb levels indicating that cadmium exposure needs to be further explored as a potential risk factor for thyroid cancer, especially given the widespread use and exposure of the general population to cadmium. This includes in-depth studies into the potential carcinogenic mechanism of cadmium on the thyroid gland.
Source: ISEE Conference Abstracts
Institution: Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Language: English
Subfield: Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4317182271