ArticleBritish journal of cancer2008
Opium, tobacco, and alcohol use in relation to oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma in a high-risk area of Iran.
Article in British journal of cancer, 2008. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 139 papers, 7 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
139 citing papers in PubMed, 7 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 293 citations in OpenAlex.
- The significant impact of opium use on various types of cancer: an updated - systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC cancer · 2025Pooled it
- Prevalence of tobacco use among cancer patients in Iran: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC public health · 2024Pooled it
- The carcinogenicity of opium consumption: a systematic review and meta-analysis.European journal of epidemiology · 2023Pooled it
- Opium Use and Cancer Risk: A Comprehensive Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies.International journal of clinical practice · 2022Pooled it
- Opium Usage and Risk of Head and Neck Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention : APJCP · 2021Pooled it
- Cancer risk in waterpipe smokers: a meta-analysis.International journal of public health · 2017Pooled it
- InterSCOPE study: Associations between esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and human papillomavirus serological markers.Journal of the National Cancer Institute · 2012Pooled it
- Outcomes from a prospective trial of endoscopic radiofrequency ablation of early squamous cell neoplasia of the esophagus.Gastrointestinal endoscopy · 2011Trial
- Associations between Opium Route of Use and Exposure to Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons as Potential Carcinogenicity Mechanism.Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology · 2025Article
- Impact of smoking and opium cessation on gastrointestinal cancer risk: A 15-year longitudinal study in Golestan Cohort.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Article
- The Effect of Opioid Use on Esophageal Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.Addiction & health · 2025Review
- Article
- Cohort profile: the PERSIAN Dena Cohort Study (PDCS) of non-communicable diseases in Southwest Iran.BMJ open · 2024Article
- Modifiable risk factors for cancer in the middle East and North Africa: a scoping review.BMC public health · 2024Article
- Age-period-cohort analysis of incidence, mortality and disability-adjusted life years of esophageal cancer in global, regional and national regions from 1990 to 2019.BMC public health · 2024Article
- Opium use and gastrointestinal cancers: a systematic review and meta-analysis study.Gastroenterology and hepatology from bed to bench · 2024Review
- Burden of Gastrointestinal Tumors in Asian Countries, 1990-2021: An Analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021.Clinical epidemiology · 2024Article
- Opium, phencyclidine, and crack cocaine smoking associations with lung and upper aerodigestive tract cancers: exploratory findings from a case-control study in Los Angeles County.The American journal of drug and alcohol abuse · 2023Article
- Opium alkaloids, biosynthesis, pharmacology and association with cancer occurrence.Open biology · 2023Review
79 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
16 authors at 5 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
Abstract
The very high incidence of oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) in Golestan Province in northeastern Iran was suggested by studies in the 1970s as partly due to opium use, which is not uncommon in this area, but based on limited numbers. From December 2003 to June 2007, we administered a validated structured questionnaire to 300 ESCC cases and 571 controls, matched on neighbourhood of residence, age (+/-2 years), and sex. We used conditional logistic regression models to calculate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) adjusted for potential confounders. Compared with those who used neither tobacco nor opium, risk of ESCC was increased in those who used tobacco only (OR, 95% CI: 1.70, 1.05-2.73), in those who used opium only (2.12, 1.21-3.74), and in those who used both tobacco and opium (2.35, 1.50-3.67). All forms of tobacco use (cigarettes, hookah, and nass) were associated with higher ESCC risk. Similarly, use of both crude opium and other forms of opium were associated with higher risk. Alcohol consumption was seen in only 2% of the cases and 2% of the controls, and was not associated with ESCC risk.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.