Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Breast cancer in priests: follow-up of an observation made 167 years ago

  • Letter to the Editor
  • Published:
European Journal of Epidemiology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Rigoni-Stern DA. Statistical facts about cancers on which Doctor Rigoni-Stern based his contribution to the Surgeons’ Subgroup of the IV Congress of the Italian Scientists on 23 September 1842. Stat Med. (1987);6(8):881–4. (translation).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Hankinson S, Hunter D. Breast Cancer. In: Hunter H, Trichopoulos D, Adami H-O, editors. Textbook of cancer epidemiology. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2002.

    Google Scholar 

  3. Guénel P, Cyr D, Sabroe S, Lynge E, Merletti F, Ahrens W, et al. Alcohol drinking may increase risk of breast cancer in men: a European population-based case-control study. Cancer Causes Control. 2004;15:571–80.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Contractor KB, Kaur K, Rodrigues GS, Kulkarni DM, Singhal H. Male breast cancer: is the scenario changing. World J Surg Oncol. 2008;6:58.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Lynge E, Afonso N, Kaerlev L, Olsen J, Sabroe S, Ahrens W, et al. European multi-centre case-control study on risk factors for rare cancers of unknown aetiology. Eur J Cancer. 2005;41:601–12.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. International Labour Office. International standard classification of occupations (ISCO). Geneva: ILO; 1968.

    Google Scholar 

  7. Kaplan SD. Retrospective cohort mortality study of Roman Catholic priests. Prev Med. 1988;17(3):335–43.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. King H. Clerical mortality patterns of the Anglican Communion. Soc Biol. 1971;18:164–77.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. King H, Locke FB. American white Protestant clergy as a low-risk population for mortality research. J Natl Cancer Inst. 1980;65:1115–24.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. King H, Bailar JC 3rd. Mortality among Lutheran clergymen. Milbank Mem Fund Q. 1968;46:527–48.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Locke FB, King H. Mortality among Baptist clergymen. J Chronic Dis. 1980;33:581–90.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Michalek AM, Mettlin C, Priore RL. Prostate cancer mortality among Catholic priests. J Surg Oncol. 1981;17(2):129–33.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Ross RK, Deapen DM, Casagrande JT, Paganini-Hill A, Henderson BE. A cohort study of mortality from cancer of the prostate in Catholic priests. Br J Cancer. 1981;43(2):233–5.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Pukkala E, Martinsen JI, Lynge E, Gunnarsdottir HK, Sparén P, Tryggvadottir L, et al. Occupation and cancer—follow-up of 15 million people in five Nordic countries. Acta Oncol. 2009;48:646–790.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Butler SM, Snowdon DA. Trends in mortality in older women: findings from the Nun Study. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci. 1996;51:S201–8.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We thank Frauke Günther for assistance with the analysis, and Franco Merletti and Elsebeth Lynge for very helpful comments on the article. This study of risk factors for rare cancers of unknown aetiology was supported financially by the European Commission, DGXII, Programme BIOMED, grant No BMH1 CT 93–1630, and national funding agencies. Denmark: The Strategic Environment Programme, grant No 92.01.015.7–06, and the Danish Epidemiology Science Centre (the activities of the centre are financed by a grant from the Danish National Research Foundation). France: Ligue Nationale Contre le Cancer, Fédération Nationale des Centres de Lutte contre le Cancer, Fondation de France, contract 955368, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM) contract Réseau en Santé Publique 4R006A, French Ministry of Environment, contract 237.01.94.40182. Germany: Federal Ministry for Education, Science, Research, and Technology (BMBF), grant 01-HP-684/8. Italy: MURST, Region Piedmont, Italian Association for Cancer Research, Compagnia SanPaolo/FIRMS. Spain: Fondo de Investigación de la Sanitarie, Ministerio de Sanidad y Consumo, Unidad de Investigación Clinico-Epidemiológica, Hospital Dr Peset, Generalitat Valenciana (FISS 95/0044–01, 96/0043–01); Departmento de Sanidad y Consumo, Gobierno Vasco; Fondo de Investigación de la Sanitaria, Ministerio de Sanidad y Consumo, Ayuda a la Investigación del Departamento de Salud del Gobierno de Navarra. Sweden: Swedish Council for Work Life Research, Research Foundation of the Department of Oncology in Umeå, Swedish Society of Medicine, Lund University Hospital Research Foundation, Gunnar, Arvid and Elisabeth Nilsson Cancer Foundation, Örebro County Council Research Committee, Örebro Medical Center Research Foundation, John and Augusta Persson Foundation for Scientific Medical Research, Berta Kamprad Foundation for Cancer Research. The study sponsors had no role in study design nor the collection, analysis, and interpretation of data nor the writing of the article and the decision to submit it for publication. All researchers were independent from funders and sponsors; and all researchers had access to all the data.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Western Australian Institute for Medical Research, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia

    Lin Fritschi

  2. CESP Center for Research in Epidemiology and Population Health INSERM, University Paris-Sud 11, Villejuif, France

    Pascal Guenel

  3. Bremen Institute for Prevention Research and Social Medicine, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany

    Wolfgang Ahrens

Authors
  1. Lin Fritschi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Pascal Guenel
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Wolfgang Ahrens
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Consortia

The European Study Group on Occupational Causes of Rare Cancers

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Lin Fritschi.

Additional information

The details of The European Study Group on Occupational Causes of Rare Cancers is given in appendix

Appendix

Appendix

DENMARK: Herman Autrup, Henrik Kolstad, Linda Kaerlev, Elsebeth Lynge, Jorn Olsen, Lisbeth Norum Pedersen, Svend Sabroe, Preben Johansen, Stein Poulsen, Peter Stubbe Teglbjaerg, Mogens Vyberg. FRANCE: Pascal Guénel, Joëlle Févotte and the members of the FRANCIM association: Patrick Arveux, Antoine Buemi, Paule-Marie Carli, Gilles Chaplain, Jean-Pierre Daurès, Jean Faivre, Pascale Grosclaude, Anne-Valérie Guizard, Michel Henry-Amar, Guy Launoy, Francois Ménégoz, Nicole Raverdy, Paul Schaffer. GERMANY: Wolfgang Ahrens, Cornelia Baumgardt-Elms, Sibylle Gotthardt, Ingeborg Jahn, Karl-Heinz Jöckel, Hiltrud Merzenich, Andreas Stang, Christa Stegmaier, Antje Timmer, Hartwig Ziegler. ITALY: Terri Ballard, Franco Bertoni, Giuseppe Gorini, Sandra Gostinicchi, Giovanna Masala, Enzo Merler, Franco Merletti, Lorenzo Simonato, Paola Zambon. LATVIA: Irena Rogovska, Galina Sharkova, Aivars Stengrevics. LITHUANIA: Jolita Gibaviciene, Laimonas Jazukevicius, Juozas Kurtinaitis, Poma Pociute. PORTUGAL: Noemia Alfonso, Altamiro Costa-Pereira, Sonia Doria, Carlos Lopes, José Manuel Lopes, Ana Miranda, Cristina Santos. SPAIN: M Adela Sanz Aguado, Juan J Aurrekoetxea, Concepción Brun, Alicia Córdoba, Miguel Angel Martínez González, Francisco Guillén Grima, Rosa Guarch, Agustin Llopis González, Blanca Marín, Amparo Marquina, María M Morales Suárez-Varela, Inés Aguinaga Ontoso, JM Martínez Peñuela, Ana Puras, Francisco Vega, Maria Aurora Villanueva Guardia. SWEDEN: Mikael Eriksson, Lennart Hardell, Irene Larsson, Hakan Olson, Monica Sandström, Gun Wingren. SWITZERLAND: Jean-Michel Lutz. UNITED KINGDOM: Janine Bell, Ian Cree, Tony Fletcher, Alex JE Foss.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Fritschi, L., Guenel, P., Ahrens, W. et al. Breast cancer in priests: follow-up of an observation made 167 years ago. Eur J Epidemiol 25, 219–221 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10654-010-9426-8

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10654-010-9426-8

Keywords

Search

Navigation