Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36895101›Full record

ReviewJNCI cancer spectrum2023

In utero exposure to antiemetic and risk of adult-onset colorectal cancer.

Caitlin C Murphy, Piera M Cirillo, Nickilou Y Krigbaum, Amit G Singal, Barbara A Cohn

Open access · goldAbstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in JNCI cancer spectrum, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
1.2field-weighted citation impact, top 23% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 4 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Father's occupation and colorectal cancer in his adult offspring.Journal of the National Cancer Institute · 2025
    Article
  2. Article
  3. Birth Cohort Colorectal Cancer (CRC): Implications for Research and Practice.Clinical gastroenterology and hepatology : the official clinical practice journal of the American Gastroenterological Association · 2024
    Review
  4. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Caitlin C MurphyDepartment of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth Houston) School of Public Health, Houston, TX, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-9365-0691
Piera M CirilloChild Health and Development Studies, Public Health Institute, Berkeley, CA, USA.ORCID 0000-0003-4571-4544
Nickilou Y KrigbaumChild Health and Development Studies, Public Health Institute, Berkeley, CA, USA.
Amit G SingalDepartment of Internal Medicine, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA.
Barbara A CohnChild Health and Development Studies, Public Health Institute, Berkeley, CA, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-9912-8447
Public Health Institute · USHarold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer CenterThe University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston · US

Funding

Early life exposures and risk of young-onset colorectal cancerR01CA242558 · NCI · UT SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER · PI MURPHY, CAITLIN C · 2019 to 2023
$1.5M
NCI NIH HHS R01 CA242558NIH HHS R01CA242558
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundIncidence rates of colorectal cancer (CRC) are increasing among adults born in and after the 1960s, implicating pregnancy-related exposures introduced at that time as risk factors. Dicyclomine, an antispasmodic used to treat irritable bowel syndrome, was initially included in Bendectin (comprising doxylamine, pyridoxine, and dicyclomine), an antiemetic prescribed during pregnancy in the 1960s.

methodsWe estimated the association between in utero exposure to Bendectin and risk of CRC in offspring of the Child Health and Development Studies, a multigenerational cohort that enrolled pregnant women in Oakland, CA, between 1959 and 1966 (n = 14 507 mothers and 18 751 liveborn offspring). We reviewed prescribed medications from mothers' medical records to identify those who received Bendectin during pregnancy. Diagnoses of CRC in adult (aged ≥18 years) offspring were ascertained by linkage with the California Cancer Registry. Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate adjusted hazard ratios, with follow-up accrued from birth through cancer diagnosis, death, or last contact.

resultsApproximately 5% of offspring (n = 1014) were exposed in utero to Bendectin. Risk of CRC was higher in offspring exposed in utero (adjusted hazard ratio = 3.38, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.69 to 6.77) compared with unexposed offspring. Incidence rates of CRC were 30.8 (95% CI = 15.9 to 53.7) and 10.1 (95% CI = 7.9 to 12.8) per 100 000 in offspring exposed to Bendectin and unexposed, respectively.

conclusionsHigher risk of CRC in offspring exposed in utero may be driven by dicyclomine contained in the 3-part formulation of Bendectin used during the 1960s. Experimental studies are needed to clarify these findings and identify mechanisms of risk.

Indexed as

AntiemeticsColorectal NeoplasmsDicyclominePrenatal Exposure Delayed EffectsAdultFemaleHumansMothersPregnancyAntiemeticsDicyclomine

Identifiers

PMID36895101
PMCPMC10076093
OpenAlexW4323811582

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.