Estrogen, Diet, Genetics and Endometrial Cancer

We will conduct a population-based case-control study in six counties of New Jersey. Cases will be women with newly-diagnosed endometrial or ovarian cancer. Controls will be matched by 5-year age groups and selected by random digit dialing (for those under 65), from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) files (for those 65 and over), or from neighborhood sampling. Controls will not have had a hysterectomy.

There will be 400 cases with endometrioid tumors, 60 with serous tumors or clear cell tumors, 300 with ovarian cancer, and 400 controls. In addition, there will be a small group of black women included from MSKCC.

We will interview participants about known and potential risk factors for endometrial and ovarian cancer and obtain information on diet. We will obtain DNA for genetic analysis from buccal specimens collected using a mouthwash rinse method. We will use logistic regression to determine odds ratios for disease with various exposures. For endometrial cancer, we will examine the association of risk with genotypes in strata defined by body mass index and dietary fat consumption.

Inclusion criteria

• Diagnosed with epithelial endometrial or ovarian cancer within the year before being contacted (cases)
• Aged 21 and over
• Residents of Essex, Union, Morris, Middlesex, Bergen, or Hudson counties, NJ
• Black women with and without endometrial cancer who are seeing gynecologists at MSKCC

Exclusion criteria

• Unable to sign informed consent
• Consent withheld by physician (cases)
• Hysterectomy (controls)
• Do not speak English or Spanish