Unhealthy sleep behaviors associated with Esophageal Adenocarcinoma risk

In a recent study by Xiaoyan Wang and team on major subtypes of esophageal cancer, esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) and squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), it has been revealed that certain sleep behaviors are associated with a significantly higher risk of esophageal cancer. These findings were published in American Association for Cancer Research.

The study, conducted with a large cohort of 393,114 participants from the UK Biobank between 2006 and 2016, analyzed various sleep behaviors, including chronotype (preference for morning or evening), sleep duration, daytime napping, daytime sleepiness, snoring, and insomnia. Participants were categorized based on the number of unhealthy sleep behaviors they exhibited.

The results revealed that individuals who reported sleeping more than 9 hours per day had a 2.05 times higher risk of developing EAC compared to those with regular sleep patterns. Moreover, those who occasionally took daytime naps showed a 1.36 times increased risk of EAC.

The risk escalated further for individuals with intermediate sleep quality, with a 47% increased risk, and those with poor sleep quality had an alarming 87% higher risk of developing EAC.

Interestingly, the study found that the increased risks for EAC were consistent across individuals, regardless of their genetic predisposition. This implies that sleep behaviors may be independent risk factors that can be modified to prevent the development of EAC.

In addition to EAC, the study also found that individuals with an evening chronotype had a 2.79 times higher risk of ESCC, a subtype of esophageal cancer, diagnosed after two years of enrollment in the study.

These findings highlight the importance of healthy sleep habits and their potential role in preventing esophageal cancer. Modifying sleep behaviors could serve as a modifiable factor in reducing the risk of EAC. However, further research is needed to understand the underlying mechanisms linking sleep behaviors and esophageal cancer. By identifying these associations between sleep behaviors and esophageal cancer, researchers hope to raise awareness about the impact of sleep on overall health and encourage individuals to prioritize healthy sleep patterns as a means of preventing EAC.

Source:

Wang, X., Tian, R., Zong, X., Jeon, M. S., Luo, J., Colditz, G. A., Wang, J. S., Tsilidis, K. K., Ju, Y.-E. S., Govindan, R., Puri, V., & Cao, Y. (2023). Sleep Behaviors, Genetic Predispositions, and Risk of Esophageal Cancer. In Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention (pp. OF1–OF8). American Association for Cancer Research (AACR). https://doi.org/10.1158/1055-9965.epi-23-0101