Can the Aging Influence Cold Environment Mediated Cancer Risk in the USA Female Population

Abstract Cancer is one of the most debilitating diseases worldwide. Cancer incidence and/or death depends on several intrinsic and extrinsic factors (e.g., dietary habits, socio-behavioral activities, physical inactivity, smoking, alcohol consumption, gender, races/ethnicities and age). Various studies have found that an inverse relationship subsists between environmental temperature and cancer risk. Furthermore, this negative relationship was found to be more consistent in the USA female population. This research mainly focuses on influence of aging on cold environment mediated cancer risk for overall and various anatomical site-specific cancers. Age-specific county-wise data of cancer incidence rate (CIR) in the USA female population was selected in this study. Statistical analysis found a negative correlation between the average annual temperature (AAT) and CIR in all anatomical sites (AAS; overall) as well as different anatomical site-specific cancers (e.g., breast, melanoma, leukaemia, pancreas, bladder, uterus, thyroid and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL), except for cervical cancer) in different age groups (e.g., less than 50 years, 50 plus years, less than 65 years and 65 plus years). In addition, an inverse relationship between the AAT and CIR was found in case of paediatric cancer. However, all the results obtained from the linear model based statistical analysis proposed that the older age-group of females particularly above 65 years seems to be more prone to cold temperature linked cancer risk. For example, age-specific cold linked cancer incidence appears to be more inclined in case of breast cancer in the age-group of 65 plus years. This study, for first time, proposes that aging may have a positive influence on the relationship between cancer incidence and environment temperature.