Provincial variation in colorectal cancer screening adherence in Canada; evidence from the Canadian Partnership for Tomorrow’s Health
The researchers sought to assess regional variation in screening uptake, identify factors to non-adherence to screening, and estimate adherence to screening in those with differing risk profiles. Using national CanPath data, they found adherence suboptimal amongst Canadians and noticed variation by region.
Investigating the oral microbiome in retrospective and prospective cases of prostate, colon, and breast cancer
Salivary samples from the Atlantic Partnership for Tomorrow’s Health (PATH) project and Alberta’s Tomorrow Project (ATP) to examine the existence of prostate, colon, and breast cancer biomarkers in the human oral microbiome. While no significant changes in oral microbiome diversity were detected, results indicate that there may be associations between oral microbiome and colon cancer disease status.
Mental health service use and associated predisposing, enabling and need factors in community living adults and older adults across Canada
The authors utilized data from the CanPath COVID-19 health survey (May to December 2020) to conduct multivariate logistic regression analysis to determine the association between mental health service use (MHSU) and predisposing, enabling, and need factors — derived from Andersen’s model of healthcare-seeking behaviour — among five regional cohorts. Among the 45,542 adults in the study population, 6.3% of respondents reported MHSU and need factors were consistently associated with MHSU.
Associations between neighborhood walkability and walking following residential relocation: Findings from Alberta’s Tomorrow Project
This study aimed to estimate whether changes in neighbourhood walkability resulting from residential relocation were associated with leisure, transportation, and total walking levels. Using data from 5,977 urban adults (non-movers, movers to less walkability, and movers to more walkability), researchers found that time spent walking at follow-up was lower among those who moved to less walkable neighbourhoods, suggesting that relocating to less walkable neighbourhoods could negatively affect health.
Personalized breast cancer onset prediction from lifestyle and health history information
This article proposes a method for predicting when a woman will develop breast cancer (Bca) based on health and lifestyle history using data from 18,288 women in Alberta’s Tomorrow Project. Their approach produced seven actionable lifestyle features that a woman can modify to show how the model can predict the effects of such changes. This method can be used to identify interventions for those with a greater likelihood of developing BCa.
Patterns and predictors of adherence to breast cancer screening recommendations in Alberta’s Tomorrow Project
This study examined screening patterns in almost 5,000 women in Alberta’s Tomorrow Project. Most participants were up-to-date with screening at enrollment and follow-up, but 21.6% were not up-to-date at follow-up, and 3.2% had never participated. Having a family doctor was the strongest predictor of regular screening, while current smokers were less likely to be regular screeners. The study highlights the importance of promoting awareness of screening recommendations and the role of family doctors in encouraging screening.
Association of dairy consumption patterns with the incidence of type 2 diabetes: Findings from Alberta’s Tomorrow Project
Researchers investigated the relationship between dairy consumption and the risk of developing type 2 diabetes (T2D) with data from Alberta’s Tomorrow Project (ATP). 15,016 women and 8,615 men completed a food-frequency questionnaire and were followed up over time to determine T2D incidence. They found that higher consumption of whole milk, regular cheese, and non-fat milk was associated with decreased risk of incident T2D only in men. The study suggests that combining different dairy products might be good for men’s health.
Harnessing the power of data linkage to enrich the cancer research ecosystem in Canada
This abstract discusses a project aimed at linking cancer registry and administrative health data to Canada’s largest population health study, the Canadian Partnership for Tomorrow’s Health (CanPath). The project seeks to enrich the cancer research ecosystem in Canada by providing researchers with a comprehensive dataset that includes genetics, environment, lifestyle, and behaviour data. The linked data will be made available through a cloud-based solution called the CanPath Data Safe Haven, which is accessible to researchers through secure access. The project will address concerns related to the accessibility of cancer data in Canada, bring more value to existing data, and support an enhanced understanding of the impacts of cancer on marginalized populations.
Development and validation of a hypertension risk prediction model and construction of a risk score in a Canadian population
This study evaluates different machine learning algorithms and compares their predictive performance with conventional models to predict hypertension incidence using data from 18,322 Alberta’s Tomorrow Project participants. The study found little difference in predictive performance between the machine learning algorithms and the conventional Cox PH model. The results suggest that conventional regression-based models can perform similarly to machine learning algorithms with good predictive accuracy in a moderate dataset with a reasonable number of features.
Associations between neighbourhood street connectivity and sedentary behaviours in Canadian adults: Findings from Alberta’s Tomorrow Project
Researchers aimed to estimate associations between street connectivity, based on space syntax-derived street integration, and sedentary behaviours. Using data from 14,758 Alberta’s Tomorrow Project participants, they found that connectivity was positively related to various measures of sitting time and negatively associated with motor vehicle travel time.