On the path to a cure
Study involving 300,000 Canadians aims to provide insight into how Canadians develop cancer and other diseases
More than 1,200 Islanders are taking part in a Canadawide study focusing on how genetics, environment, lifestyles and other factors contribute to the development of cancer and other diseases.
The Atlantic Partnership for Tomorrow’s Health, or Atlantic PATH, held a public information session in Charlottetown earlier this month to give an update on the study, which is the largest of its kind ever conducted in Canada.
The study is part of the Canadian Partnership for Tomorrow Project (CPTP) and involves 300,000 individuals across Canada including 35,000 in Atlantic Canada to explore how to better prevent and treat chronic diseases.
Jason Hicks, executive director of Atlantic PATH, said the study tracks participants over 30 years, and the information will become more valuable to researchers every year.
“Our principal investigator says its like aging fine wine,” he said. “We can do some things very early on, but for chronic disease (the research) becomes more and more valuable. As time goes on … it’s poised to be a very valuable tool.” Hicks said that information will help find and evaluate risk factors.
It could be an especially important project to Atlantic Canadians, who have the highest rate of cancer diagnosis in the country.
“Because the earlier we intervene on cancer, the greater the chances are of that patient surviving and having a much more positive outcome,” said Hicks, noting that although some risk factors like smoking have been linked to the disease there are many who live healthy lifestyles that still get diagnosed. “This research tool was designed to answer these questions…. But really, this is only limited by the ideas scientists and researches come up with, which we know is a very broad spectrum.”
Although most of the participants have only been involved since 2012, some of the early findings from the Atlantic cohort of the study were presented during the meeting. So far, researchers have found that one third of Atlantic Canadian participants have been diagnosed with at least one chronic condition.
The information also showed obesity rates in Atlantic Canada are above the national average, with 71 per cent being overweight or obese. Vanessa DeClercq, an inhouse researcher with Atlantic PATH, described her study looking at the prevalence of obesity and physical activity in participants with arthritis. The information showed about 20 per cent of Atlantic Canadian participants had arthritis, with the disease increasingly common in older age groups.
She noted that individuals who were moderately active were less likely to have the disease than someone who was inactive.
The disease was also more common among those who were classified as obese or greater.
“Most strikingly, our results with abdominal obesity showed that 58 participants with arthritis had a waist circumference larger than the recommended guidelines,” said DeClercq. “In my future research, I want to explore mechanisms linking arthritis to obesity and to use some of the blood samples to look at different markers for early indications of arthritis.”
Hicks said there is a followup survey that participants can take and those interested can contact Atlantic Path to get a paper or online copy. More information can be found on www.atlanticpath.ca.