A new European research project is investigating how local environments including air quality and social factors can influence cancer risk in young people.
“We want to understand how the environment actually affects the risk of cancer in children and adolescents,” says Professor Geir Aamodt.
He is an epidemiologist at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU) and studies how diseases are distributed in the population – including how environment and living conditions influence health.
Together with Professor Marte Karoline Råberg Kjøllesdal, he is participating in the international project MIREYA.
Kjøllesdal is a public health professor who researches social inequality in health, including how living conditions and socioeconomic factors affect disease and quality of life.
Connecting environment, genetics and inequality
The project brings together researchers from several European countries to investigate why children from some parts of the population are more vulnerable than others.
“We know that there is a clear social gradient in health. This applies to cancer as well,” says Aamodt.
The researchers will therefore look at how several factors interact:
- Environmental exposure
- Socioeconomic conditions
- Genetic mechanisms
“It is precisely the combination that is interesting,” says Kjøllesdal.
Using Norwegian health data
Norway has a unique advantage in the project.
“All cancer cases are registered in national registries. This gives us a solid starting point,” says Aamodt.
At the same time, these data are linked to health surveys that provide information about lifestyle and background.
“Then we can begin to understand more of the whole picture – not just the disease itself.”
Examining everyday environments
The researchers are investigating factors many people encounter daily:
- Air pollution
- Noise
- Access to green areas
- Urbanization
- Pesticides
“These are not abstract conditions. This is about how we build and organize society,” Aamodt says.
Using artificial intelligence
To handle large amounts of data, the project will use artificial intelligence. Researchers are integrating data from many sources to better understand causal relationships.
The project is led by the Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori in Italy and carried out in collaboration with, among others, the University of Milano-Bicocca. It is a major international collaboration, and Norway contributes strong data and analytical expertise.
A major European collaboration
The project involves several countries and tens of thousands of participants.
“When we combine data from many countries, we get a dataset that is truly unique,” says Kjøllesdal.
The aim is not only new knowledge but also better prevention.
“We hope the research can be used to develop policies that reduce the risk of cancer in children and young people,” says Aamodt.
Factbox: The MIREYA Project Investigates connections between environment and cancer in children and adolescents Collaboration between research groups in nine European countries Coordinated by the University of Milano-Bicocca in Italy Uses data from both health registries and health surveys Examines air pollution, noise, local environments and social conditions Includes tens of thousands of participants, including from Norway Goal: better knowledge of causes – and a foundation for prevention |