Publications

These publications are examples of research made possible with data from CanPath and its regional cohorts.

2021

The association between mental health and shift work: Findings from the Atlantic PATH study

Authors: Ellen Sweeney, Yunsong Cui, Zhijie Michael Yu, Trevor J. B. Dummer, Vanessa DeClercq, Cynthia Forbes, Scott A. Grandy, Melanie R. Keats, Anil Adisesh

Researchers studied the relationship between mental health and shift work amongst 12,413 Atlantic PATH participants, including 4,155 shift workers and 8,258 non-shift workers. They found that shift workers were more likely to have increased rates of depression and poor self-rated health, as well as depressive and anxiety symptom scores compared to non-shift workers.

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2021

Post-Treatment Adverse Health Correlates among Prostate Cancer Survivors in a Sample of Men Residing in Atlantic Canada

Authors: Gabriela Ilie, Robert Rutledge, Ellen Sweeney

A cross-sectional analysis was conducted on a subsample of 632 male participants aged 36–69 the Atlantic PATH. The primary outcomes were the presence of mild, moderate or severe depression or anxiety indicators and were assessed using the seven-item generalized anxiety disorder (GAD-7) scale and the nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), respectively.

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2021

Environmental Correlates of Physical Activity, Sedentary Behavior, and Self-Rated Health in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Authors: Daniel Stevens, Pantelis Andreou, Daniel Rainham

This study sought to investigate associations between the environment and physical activity, sedentary behavior, and self-rated health in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. The new data may identify barriers to physical activity and assist clinicians in the prescription of exercise for individuals living with COPD.

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2021

Age and Sex-Specific Associations in Health Risk Factors for Chronic Disease: Evidence from the Atlantic Partnership for Tomorrow’s Health (PATH) Cohort

Authors: Vanessa DeClerq, Ellen Sweeney

The objective of this study was to discern health risk factors for chronic disease by age and sex using health risk factor data from participants of the Atlantic PATH (n = 16,165). The study found evident differences in health risk factors for males and females, as well as across age groups.

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2021

Polygenic risk scores predict diabetes complications and their response to intensive blood pressure and glucose control

Authors: Johanne Tremblay, Mounsif Haloui, Redha Attaoua, Ramzan Tahir, Camil Hishmih, François Harvey, François-Christophe Marois-Blanchet, Carole Long, Paul Simon, Lara Santucci, Candan Hizel, John Chalmers, Michel Marre, Stephen Harrap, Renata Cífková, Alena Krajčoviechová, David R. Matthews, Bryan Williams, Neil Poulter, Sophia Zoungas, Stephen Colagiuri, Giuseppe Mancia, Diederick E. Grobbee, Anthony Rodgers, Liusheng Liu, Mawussé Agbessi, Vanessa Bruat, Marie-Julie Favé, Michelle P. Harwood, Philip Awadalla, Mark Woodward, Julie G. Hussin & Pavel Hamet

This study assessed whether cardiovascular and renal risk factors combined with the age of onset and duration of diabetes are sufficient predictors of type 2 diabetes. Of the 21,702 participants, 488 participants with type 2 diabetes originated from CanPath. The researchers developed a prediction model to help identify high-risk individuals who could benefit from therapies and treatments.

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2021

Examining the etiology of early-onset breast cancer in the Canadian Partnership for Tomorrow’s Health (CanPath)

Authors: Joy Pader, Robert Basmadjian, Dylan O'Sullivan, Nicole Mealey, Yibing Ruan, Christine Friedenreich, Rachel Murphy, Edwin Wang, May Lynn Quan, Darren Brenner

The objective of this study was to investigate relationships between modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors and early-onset breast cancer among the BC Generations Project, Alberta’s Tomorrow Project and Ontario Health Study. In this study, measures of adiposity, pregnancy history, and familial history of breast cancer are important risk factors for early-onset breast cancer.

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2021

Dietary patterns with combined and site-specific cancer incidence in Alberta’s Tomorrow Project cohort

Authors: Romy Willemsen, Jessica McNeil, Emily Heer, Steven Johnson, Christine Fredenreich, Darren Brenner

This study used data from the Alberta’s Tomorrow Project to examine the association between dietary patterns derived with two methods, and combined and site-specific cancer incidence in Canada.

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2021

The association between mental health and shift work: Findings from the Atlantic PATH study

Authors: Ellen Sweeney, Yunsong Cui, Zhijie Michael Yu, Trevor Dummer, Vanessa DeClercq, Cynthia Forbes, Scott Grandy, Melanie Keats, Anil Adisesh

This study found that shift workers reported higher levels of anxiety, depression, and lower self-rated health than non-shift workers. Shift workers were more likely to report major depression and poor self-rated health, and female shift workers were more likely to report depressive symptoms and poor self-rated health.

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2021

Metabolomics and cancer preventive behaviors in the BC Generations Project

Authors: J. Qi, J. J. Spinelli, T. J. B. Dummer, P. Bhatti, M. C. Playdon, J. Olin Levitt, B. Hauner, S. C. Moore & R. A. Murphy

To better understand links between behaviours and cancer, researchers measured metabolites in blood samples from 1,319 BC Generations Project participants. The study found a large number of metabolites were different between health behaviours. Highlights include lower levels of metabolites that are involved in pathways that play a role in cancer development among participants who consumed more fruits and vegetables and had a healthy body weight.

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2021

Associations between neighbourhood built characteristics and sedentary behaviours among Canadian men and women: findings from Alberta’s Tomorrow Project

Authors: Vikram Nichani, Liam Turley, Jennifer E. Vena, Gavin R. McCormack

This study examined associations between the objective neighbourhood built environment and self-reported sedentary behaviour. Researchers sourced data from 14,785 Alberta’s Tomorrow Project participants. 3-way intersections, high population counts, and high walkability resulted in more sitting time, and low connectivity and low walkability resulted in more sitting time in motor vehicles.

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