Handedness and the risk of glioma

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Brianna Miller, University of Alabama, Birmingham; Noah C. Peeri, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute; L. Burt Nabors, University of Alabama, Birmingham; Jordan H. Creed, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute; Zachary J. Thompson, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute; Carrie M. Rozmeski, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute; Renato V. LaRocca, Norton Cancer Institute; Sajeel Chowdhary, Lynn Cancer Institute; Jeffrey James Olson, Emory University; Reid C. Thompson, Vanderbilt University; Kathleen M. Egan, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute
• Language: English
• Date: 2018-05-01
• Publisher: Springer Verlag (Germany)
• Publication Version: Author Accepted Manuscript (After Peer Review)
• Copyright Statement: © 2018, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11060-018-2759-y
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Journal of Neuro-Oncology
• ISSN: 0167-594X
• Volume: 137
• Issue: 3
• Start Page: 639
• End Page: 644
• Grant/Funding Information: he research is based in part on the UK Biobank Resource under application number 16944.; This research was also funded in part by the National Cancer Institute through the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Cancer Research Experiences for Students [grant number R25Ca076023-17].; The work was supported by the National Institutes of Health [grant number R01 CA116174].
• Keywords: CLASSIFICATION; Neurosciences & Neurology; AGE; Glioma; BRAIN-TUMORS; Life Sciences & Biomedicine; WOMEN; CENTRAL-NERVOUS-SYSTEM; UKBiobank; Oncology; Science & Technology; Clinical Neurology; UNITED-STATES; Glioblastoma; HYPOTHESIS; Cohort study; LATERALIZATION; Handedness; Case-control study
• Research Categories: Biology, Neuroscience; Health Sciences, Oncology; Health Sciences, Medicine and Surgery

Abstract

Gliomas are the most common type of malignant primary brain tumor and few risk factors have been linked to their development. Handedness has been associated with several pathologic neurological conditions such as schizophrenia, autism, and epilepsy, but few studies have evaluated a connection between handedness and risk of glioma. In this study, we examined the relationship between handedness and glioma risk in a large case–control study (1849 glioma cases and 1354 healthy controls) and a prospective cohort study (326,475 subjects with 375 incident gliomas). In the case–control study, we found a significant inverse association between left handedness and glioma risk, with left-handed persons exhibiting a 35% reduction in the risk of developing glioma [odds ratio (OR) = 0.65, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.51–0.83] after adjustment for age, gender, race, education, and state of residence; similar inverse associations were observed for GBM (OR = 0.69, 95% CI 0.52–0.91), and non-GBM (OR = 0.59, 95% CI 0.42–0.82) subgroups. The association was consistent in both males and females, and across age strata, and was observed in both glioblastoma and in lower grade tumors. In the prospective cohort study, we found no association between handedness and glioma risk (hazards ratio = 0.92, 95% CI 0.67–1.28) adjusting for age, gender, and race. Further studies on this association may help to elucidate mechanisms of pathogenesis in glioma.