Life’s essential 8 and cancer risk: Insights from two large cohort studies (Preprint)

BACKGROUND Based on the data from the NHANES and the UK Biobank database, we aimed to identify potential associations between the LE8 scores and the risk of all cancer as well as cancer-specific incidence and mortality. In addition, we are going to construct a 10-year risk model for cancer based on LE8 scores and calculated population-attributable fractions (PAFs) of cancer mortality risk associated with the LE8 scores, aiming to provide insights into potential interventions for cancer prevention. OBJECTIVE To examine the relationship between Life's Essential 8 (LE8) scores and cancer prevalence, incidence, and mortality using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) and the UK Biobank. METHODS Data from the NHANES (2007-2018) and the UK Biobank database with a median follow-up of more than 10 years. Logistic regression assessed the relationship between LE8 scores and cancer prevalence in NHANES, while cox-proportional hazards models estimated the relationship between LE8 scores and cancer incidence in the UK Biobank and cancer mortality in both databases. A 10-year cancer risk nomogram model was constructed, and population attributable fraction (PAF) and years of life lost (YLL) rate were calculated. RESULTS We included 23,355 participants from NHANES and 205,526 participants from the UK Biobank after exclusion criterion. Results in both populations consistently demonstrated that per 10 scores increase can reduce the risk of cancer prevalence (OR, 0.93; 95% CI, 0.89-0.97), cancer incidence (HR, 0.93; 95% CI, 0.92-0.94) and cancer mortality (NHANES: HR, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.75-0.91 & UK Biobank: HR, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.80-0.85). Lower BMI, blood pressure, blood glucose, blood lipid, less nicotine exposure and more physical activity were associated with a reduced risk of cancer incidence and mortality. The risk of common tumors including bladder, kidney, liver, lung, oesophagus, oral, pancreas, prostate, and stomach cancers decreased with increasing LE8 scores in the UK Biobank. The calibration curves of the nomogram showed good consistency between the predicted and actual 10-year cancer risk. CONCLUSIONS It was found that a high cardiovascular health score may reduce cancer risk. Necessary preventive measures should be taken to promote those who have poor performance in LE8 scores. An innovative nomogram model has been developed to effectively identifying individuals at higher risk and implementing appropriate preventive measures.