Research

Research in NME is currently structured around five teams that work in an integrated and collaborative way:

Hormones

Team Leaders: Sabina Rinaldi and Laure Dossus

The overarching aim of the Hormones Team is to advance research on the role of hormones and metabolism in cancer etiology, building on established molecular epidemiology research on hormone-dependent cancers, with emphasis on cancers of the breast, endometrium, ovary, and thyroid. This research programme is based on the application of cutting-edge laboratory-based technologies to large-scale epidemiological studies, developed in high-income settings as well as in studies in countries in epidemiological transition. Currently, key activities include measuring hormones, inflammatory factors, fatty acids, and endogenous metabolites (targeted metabolomics), analysed by a variety of assays (immunoassays, gas chromatography–mass spectrometry [GC-MS], liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry [LC-MS]), and proteomics (multiplexed assays) in samples from large-scale epidemiological studies. Technological development is also a major focus and is crucial to support evolving research.

Onco-Metabolomics

Team Leaders: Pekka Keski-Rahkonen and Mazda Jenab

The Onco-Metabolomics Team is internationally recognized in the application of untargeted and targeted metabolomics to large-scale epidemiological and human intervention studies on cancer. The Team implements state-of-the-art LC-MS-based analytical techniques to measure and identify metabolites in various biospecimens for the study of metabolite variations associated with cancers, particularly those of the gastrointestinal tract, as well as cancer-related outcomes such as obesity and metabolic dysfunction. The Team also aims to improve the understanding of underlying molecular mechanisms of cancer development by identifying biomarkers of cancer risk factors among dietary, lifestyle, environmental, and metabolic exposures. Key research interests include assessing the roles of exogenous exposures (diet, lifestyle, environment) and endogenous exposures (gut bacterial composition and functionality, the gut–liver axis, metabolic dysfunction) in cancer development.

Sustainable Lifestyle and Cancer

Team Leader: Inge Huybrechts

The overall goal of the Sustainable Lifestyle and Cancer Team is to conduct epidemiological research to investigate the role of nutrition, physical activity, sedentary behaviour, sleep, and stress in the incidence of cancer and to identify pathways to prevention. A major focus of the Team is the development of innovative methods for exposure assessment, and the conduct of sustainable evidence-based lifestyle interventions to inform tailored lifestyle recommendations for cancer prevention. This is achieved through three integrated objectives:

• enhancing databases of existing epidemiological studies with innovative lifestyle indicators to investigate cutting-edge research on lifestyle indicators (e.g. food biodiversity, food processing, meal timing, circadian rhythm, and stress);
• developing observational studies (with cohort and case–control designs) in high-, middle-, and low-income settings, to evaluate populations undergoing lifestyle transitions and elucidate causal relationships between lifestyle behaviours and cancer risk; and
• developing sustainable, cost-effective, and wide-reaching lifestyle behaviour change interventions, and evaluating their efficacy for cancer prevention; these intervention strategies make use of teachable moments, such as during cancer screening, to reach high-risk population groups during periods when they may be more receptive and motivated for lifestyle behaviour changes.

Nutrition, Cancer, and Multimorbidity

Team Leader: Heinz Freisling

The Nutrition, Cancer, and Multimorbidity Team investigates how nutrition, obesity, and metabolic dysfunction interact with cardiometabolic diseases, including cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes, in relation to cancer incidence. The co-occurrence of chronic diseases in individuals, including cardiometabolic diseases and cancer, defined as multimorbidity, is becoming increasingly common. Multimorbidity could be due to common risk factors among chronic conditions, such as obesity, physical inactivity, or unhealthy diets, but it could also be caused by shared biological pathways. Furthermore, metabolic consequences of cardiometabolic diseases may have incremental impacts on cancer risk. However, these interrelationships still need to be elucidated in population-based settings. The role of lifestyle factors and the occurrence of morbid conditions that affect survival in people living with cancer is also an area of research for the Team.

Biostatistics and Data Integration

Team Leader Vivian Viallon

The Biostatistics and Data Integration Team provides statistical support to research conducted within NME and oversees the management of epidemiological data, including lifestyle, molecular, cancer end-points, and vital status within the EPIC cohort and other population-based studies. Appropriate use of statistical methodology across IARC is also promoted via direct support and training/seminars. The Team also leads the development, implementation, and application of biostatistical and bioinformatic techniques for the analysis and integration of lifestyle and molecular data, including metabolomics, proteomics, genetics, and epigenetic data within cancer epidemiology studies. Specific ongoing activities include the development of statistical methods for the normalization, pre-processing, and analysis of metabolomics and proteomics data, the discovery of novel biomarkers of diet using molecular data, the identification of -omics signatures of lifestyle and their relationship with cancer, and research on healthy lifestyle patterns and cancer risk. The Team also leads a major programme of research on alcohol and cancer with a focus on understudied cancers and on alcohol consumption patterns throughout the life-course.